


True Power

by LittleLeyLine



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: BoO Spoilers, F/M, HoO - Freeform, I haven't read those, PJO, not compliant with anything written after boo, percy jackson - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-28
Updated: 2017-04-01
Packaged: 2018-07-10 18:38:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 55,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6999874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleLeyLine/pseuds/LittleLeyLine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the war with Gaea, Percy's powers have been getting stronger- but he's not the only one who's noticed. He doesn't trust himself with what he can do, and if any of his enemies find out, they'll leap at the chance to bring Percy over to their side. Would Percy's friends still trust him if they knew the truth about the extent of his power? A giant group of monsters is planning to attack Camp Half-Blood, and they know that the only way they'll have a chance at winning is with a secret weapon. And who better to lead them to victory than capturing and using one of the most powerful demigods of the century?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"Percy, it's my turn!"

"Nuh uh! I asked first!"

"Me next!"

"Watch me, Percy!"

"Can I go?"

It was the second week of July, and this year Camp Half-Blood had received a lot of new campers- campers ages four to five, that is- and all of them were infinitely interested in Percy Jackson. Most of those kids were still floored by cheap magic shows, so to them Percy may as well have been a god. Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon, former praetor of New Rome, leader of Camp Half-Blood, and member of The Seven now found himself with a new title: Head Babysitter.

Every day so far that week, Percy found himself standing on the shore of Long Island Sound, surrounded by children. The kids were always begging to be shown more 'magic,' and that's when Percy got the idea to make an amusement park of his 'magic,' persay. He created small, wide whirlpools for the kids to ride in; he shot geysers up into the air, on which the kids would fly up, and he'd proceed to catch them again in the waves below. If Percy had still been only twelve, this kind of mental power would've been too much, but after all he'd been through, Water World was a no-brainer. He kept all his little tricks going simultaneously, able to keep an eye on the speed of the whirlpool while remembering to catch every little one that soared down from the top of the geysers. It was a bit tiring of course, but Percy wasn't having much of a problem anymore with using a lot of power at once. Truthfully, he'd never had a problem with using lots of power at once. If everyone understood how much power he _really_ had-

Percy felt a small tug on the hem of his shirt.

"Percy?" little Colby squeaked, one tiny hand still gripping the orange tee.

"What's up?" Percy didn't take his eyes off of the water before him. He had both hands raised; his right hand continued to twirl at a constant pace while his left sporadically shot up into the air with each geyser blast, then flicked to create the wave that'd catch the small camper.

"C-Can I try?" Colby asked timidly. It took Percy a second to understand- his mind was already pretty occupied.

"You mean, you want a turn on the geyser? Sorry little dude, but there's a line." Indeed, at least four kids were waiting in the sand for their chance.

Colby shook his head no, but Percy didn't notice. He was too focused on the rides. "I…I want t-to try." He pointed at Percy's hands.

The son of Poseidon took the opportunity to glance down, and realization hit. "You want to control the water?"

Colby nodded vigorously, a smile spreading across his face.

 _It's only a Poseidon thing, kid,_ Percy wanted to reply, but he thought better of it. Most, if not all of the children, hadn't been claimed yet. He hated talking about his dad in front of unclaimed campers. Every time, he felt like he was rubbing in the fact that he not only knew whom his godly parent was, but he'd even met Poseidon on numerous occasions. Heck, Colby's dad could be the god of the sea for all they knew, though that chance of that happening was next to none. Who's to say he couldn't have the chance to try it out anyway?

"Alright guys, Water World's closing down," Percy announced, slowly lowering his hands. He was met with a chorus of "Aww"s, but he had an idea. The whirlpool slowed to a stop, and the geysers sank back down into the ocean. The kids retreated on to the beach and ran off, ready to find something else to do, and Percy finally knelt down next to Colby.

"So, you want to control the water, huh?"

Colby nodded again. He was only four years old, and he preferred not to talk a lot.

Obviously Colby wouldn't be able to do anything with the water, but Colby didn't know that.

Percy smiled, then sidestepped behind Colby- still squatting down- and reached around to hold Colby's hands from behind, his chest on the small demigod's back. "First, take a deep breath. Smell the salt in the air, and imagine that the ocean is a part of you." Percy felt Colby take a deep breath, and he could nearly feel the excitement and anxiety radiating off of the boy.

"You're still pretty young, Colby, so we aren't going to be making any tsunamis or hurricanes today." Colby giggled. "Instead, I want to see you drag a small stream from the ocean into your hand."

"Now, close your eyes."

Colby did as he was told, which meant it was Percy's turn to make some magic. Sea green eyes focused intently on the small waves lapping near their feet, Percy willed a small stream to stay behind as the waves drew back.

"Keep 'em shut, Colby. You're almost there…"

The water trickled up to Colby's toes, and from there it spiraled up and pooled in Colby's outstretched hands. The tiny toddler gasped, and his big brown eyes flew open. This was the part that Percy loved the most when he hung out with the new recruits. Their surprise and astonishment made him feel like a superhero, and watching them discover their own true talents was even better. He could watch them begin to believe in themselves and learn to love who they are, something that Percy himself struggled to do when he was younger.

Being the only son of Poseidon made him an outcast during his first years at camp, and even now he still sensed a sort of barrier between him and the rest of camp, save for people like Annabeth, Grover, and the rest of the Seven. Percy held an amount of power that hadn't been seen for centuries, and that scared people. If he was being honest, it even scared himself. After what he did to Misery in Tartarus, Percy realized just how much of a threat his power made him. If he was ever to lose control of himself…

He might hurt those he loves the most.

All the campers seemed to understand an unspoken fact about Percy Jackson. If he was ever to fight against Camp Half-Blood, there was a good possibility that he would win. He could take the lake and drown the safe haven, or create a hurricane strong enough to break the magical force field around Camp, or maybe-

No. Percy refused to consider that last option. There was one power that he was beginning to think he might have, but he was too afraid to try it out. That sort of power would cause him to lose the trust of all those he loves, and Percy valued his friends too much to lose them over a stupid trick. The sheer fact that he might be able to control-

"Percy!"

Percy's concentration broke, and the water slipped through Colby's short, chubby fingers. Percy stood and saw Jason standing about twenty yards away.

"Bro, we're having a meeting in the Big House!" he called to Percy.

"Camp counselors?"

"No, just The Seven."

Percy ushered Colby off to go join his friends before running over to Jason.

"What's going on?" he asked. Jason looked worried.

"It's Rachel and Chiron. They received a message from the gods last night."

Jason gulped nervously, and Percy's eyebrows furrowed as he pushed on, "What sort of message?"

"The monsters are gathering in New York."

Percy waited for Jason to continue, but the son of Zeus didn't seem to want to.

"They're hunting you."


	2. Plans at the Ping-Pong Table

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The demigods discuss their plan of action against the rising monster army.

Percy knew the meeting would be serious the moment he sat down because all of the ping pong balls were missing.

Grover Underwood sat at the foot of the ping pong table, fidgeting with his rasta cap nervously, going as far as to slide it off his head and nibble at the end. Percy sat on Grover's right, and his satyr friend would only steal nervous glances at him in between what were now becoming large bites of hat. Next to Percy sat Piper Mclean, who was rapidly talking to Jason on her right, gesturing dramatically about some movie her dad was filming. Percy couldn't remember what it was called- something like "Gladiator 2: Space Invaders." Whatever it was, the media was getting desperate for new movie ideas.

Directly across the table from Percy was Hazel Levesque. She was absentmindedly swinging her legs under the table, since her feet didn't reach the floor. Next to Hazel sat Nico. The son of Hades looked healthier than he had half of a year ago, when the Second Great Prophecy had been fulfilled. His skin had gained back some color, so he wasn't as pale as he used to be, and he'd gotten a haircut. He was also dating Will Solace, which meant lots of time in the sun, contributing to the sunburn on his cheeks and nose. Nico was twirling his skull ring around his finger and watching Frank Zhang next to him, who was reading over some proclamations Reyna wanted to pass. Being praetor was a full-time job. Annabeth Chase, Percy's girlfriend and professional architect of Olympus, wasn't there. She was busy with renovations in the heavens. Ares insulted Hepheastus at the last godly meeting, which led to some statues being dismembered and buildings burned. She would be busy for at least another month, but at least she's doing what she loves.

"Demigods," began Chiron, who sat at the head of the table. He was sitting in his magic wheelchair, which hid his enormous horse half inside. Percy was determined to someday learn how that even worked.

"Rachel and I both had…urgent dreams last night." The centaur waved his hand, and out from the shadows of the room stepped Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Camp Half-Blood's oracle. Her red hair hung loose on her shoulders, its frizziness adding to her exhausted look. She had dark circles under her eyes, and her jade-colored cloak was disheveled and dirty.

 _She's starting to look like the old oracle,_ Percy thought to himself. Of course, he'd never say that out loud. Rachel'd throw whatever was nearest at his head.

Rachel cleared her throat. "In my dream, I was standing in Central Park at night. I couldn't see much, but I heard a rustling behind me and turned to see a dracanae and empousa running through the trees. I couldn't hear everything they were saying, but I understood a few words: camp, headquarters, power, and-" Rachel's voice caught in her throat. "-kill and potion. Whatever it is they're planning, it isn't good. That's when I heard Apollo's voice. He told me that the monsters were gathering in the state, and they're going to attempt to bring the most powerful demigod over to their side. They figured that with the demigods' most valuable member on their team, they'd have a better chance at defeating us. They'd get all of our secrets, our strategies, everything."

"And that's where the dream ends," Chiron finished for her, leaning forward to rest his arms on the table. "I had the same one. The only thing left out was the name of the demigod they are after."

"And since you all are the most powerful demigods we know, it's one of you." Glances were exchanged around the table. At one point, everyone happened to be looking at Percy, who proceeded to blush. For someone who got involved in every major event in the mythological world, Percy still felt uncomfortable whenever he was thrust in the spotlight. It wasn't his fault that the gods were extra motivated to ruin his life.

"Grover can prove that Rachel's dream reflects reality," Chiron continued.

The satyr nodded, swallowing his latest bite of rasta cap before explaining, "I saw a manticore this morning when I was in town checking on Central Park's tree nymphs. He didn't cause any trouble, but he seemed to be in a hurry to get somewhere. The nymphs also confirmed that monsters were passing through last night."

Grover's voice began to shake as he spoke. "They said that the monsters were talking about kidnapping the most powerful demigod, then killing the rest. Th-They want to kill _everybody!_ "

Percy leaned over and put his hand on his emotional friend's shoulder. "Hey, don't worry about it. We're all usually about to die."

Hazel let out a nervous laugh, but most everyone remained in silence.

Piper spoke up first. "So, let me make sure I've got this right: The monsters are developing a master plan to use a potion to turn the most powerful demigod evil, and they'll use him or her to destroy all the other demigods?"

"Pretty much," Rachel agreed with a nonchalant shrug.

"Easy, then," Jason piped up. "We stay in camp. The monsters can't get in to neither Camp Half-Blood nor Camp Jupiter. Everyone is safe in camp."

"If we do that, every monster will show up at camp and we'll be forced into another war," Nico countered. "The force field will hold them back for a while, but it can't hold that many monsters back for that long of a time. They'll wear it down or find some way to disable it."

"So what should we do then?" Hazel asked the crowd.

"We could send a small group of demigods out to find the monsters' HQ," Percy suggested.

"Cut them off at their source and prevent the attack in the first place," Frank added.

Their was a general murmur of agreement before Hazel raised the question, "Who do we send?"

"We could go," Jason suggested, implying a mission including the Seven and Nico. Even though there were only six members of the original Seven left after Leo Valdez's, well, explosive demise, the group kept the name and adopted Nico and Reyna into it as numbers eight and nine of the Seven.

Nico disagreed. "They're looking for demigods with lots of power. If we go to them first, we'll be walking into a trap. We'll be bringing their bounty to them."

"Then we send demigods with less power, like a child of Hermes or Hypnos," Frank recommended.

"All demigods are valuable, don't forget that," Hazel chipped in, looking at Frank crossly.

"No, no, I completely agree. It's just, not everyone can create a storm powerful enough to wreck a city, like Percy and Jason," Frank explained. Percy laughed to brush off the comment, but in reality he was nervous. He had a feeling that the monsters would be looking for him, Nico, Hazel, or Jason. Children of the Big Three were generally known to have the most power. From the looks Grover and Chiron were giving him, Percy could tell that they too thought Percy to be the target, and even they didn't know the extent of his power. So far, the only ones who knew about his encounter with Misery and his little "episode" with the poison and tears were Annabeth and Piper.

Being in Tartarus had caused Percy to really consider what he could do. Yeah, all water was under his control, and sometimes the weather when it came to hurricanes. He could talk to horses and breathe underwater, too. However, Piper, Jason, Hazel, and Frank didn't even know about his earthquakes yet, much less his control over poison and tears. Percy was too afraid to test his newfound abilities again. He didn't want to know if he could control those things out of Tartarus, too. Besides, where would he practice? And on whom? He didn't want to subject anyone to that kind of terror and feeling of helplessness. What if Percy could go even further than that? After all, the human body is 75% water…

"Shut _up,_ " Percy growled under his breath to himself. Luckily, the room was full of too much chaotic debating to hear Percy's comment.

"If we send regular demigods, can they defend themselves against the monsters?" Percy finally asked, albeit quietly. Piper and Grover heard him, and when they turned to listen, the rest followed. Clearing his throat, Percy continued, louder this time. "I mean, they've all trained hard and I trust them to defend themselves, but from the sound of it there are a lot of monsters. How many demigods would we be sending, then? We could probably afford to send less of us. We don't know what we're getting into, here, and to send less experienced demigods could end with more death. Besides, I don't want anyone risking his or her life to stop an attack meant for me- o-or for any of us."

He got an affirmative nod from Frank, Jason, and Nico. "We've sailed through the forbidden Mediterranean, for Poseidon's sake. We've fought giants and titans. In all honesty, we members of the Seven are probably the most prepared for a quest like this."

The plan wasn't ideal, but no one offered anything better.

"Then it is decided," Chiron declared. "Generally I prefer to send three on a quest, but this time five of you should go. If the demigod they're after is one of the quest members, four more of the most powerful demigods should be a sufficient fighting force to counter. It's also enough that traveling will be easier, as will escape."

"I'll go," Percy volunteered immediately. Chiron looked as if he wanted to object, but he stayed silent.

"Me too," Piper announced. "I could charmspeak monsters into thinking we're weak."

"Good thinking," Chiron agreed. "Three more spots."

"I can go," Hazel offered. "I've been working on my Mist magic, and paired with Piper's charmspeak we may as well be mortals."

Frank shuffled his feet awkwardly, "I want to help, but Reyna and I are assigning the new guards and legion generals tomorrow. It's customary that both praetors are present, and there's a lot of planning involved, and we've only-"

"It's fine, Frank," Percy smiled, a sense of understanding passing between the two boys. "Praetorship is important, and you have a duty to New Rome. We'll honor that."

"I guess that leaves Jason and I," Nico remarked, "since Annabeth is busy up in Olympus."

"Percy, Piper, Hazel, Nico, and Jason. You will leave after dinner tonight. I am afraid we don't have much time to lose; I suggest that you hide in Central Park to find a few monsters and follow them to their headquarters. From there," Chiron smirked. "Kick some monster butt." The demigods laughed, happy to release some of the tension that had built up over the course of their discussions.

"Meeting adjourned."

The demigods, oracle, satyr, and centaur filed out of the meeting room. Once outside, Percy remained on the Big House's porch. The view of Camp Half-Blood was so peaceful from there. The strawberry fields were blooming beautifully, shrieks of delight came from by the lava wall, and campers ran about, smiling as if all was right with the world. In the distance, Thalia's pine tree stood tall and solitary, a lone protector of the camp. From here, the restless, wild sea couldn't even be heard.

Percy wasn't surprised to hear Chiron roll up behind him.

"You think it's me, don't you."

"Oh, I know it's you."

Percy turned to look at Chiron, cocking an eyebrow. "We don't know for sure. It could be Jason, or Hazel. Or Nico- that kid's got crazy amounts of power. Heck, he scares me sometimes."

Chiron chuckled. "That may be true, but this isn't a time for modesty. I know what you are capable of, my dear boy."

Percy tensed. _Does he know everything?_

"You are as unpredictable as the sea, Percy. If the others are turned over to the monster's side by a potion or whatnot, we know what to expect. You, however…your powers have yet to be truly defined."

Percy didn't know how to reply. He was fully aware of how much he had to learn about his abilities, and he was terrified that he might learn the hard way. There's no easy way to say, _Hey, I might be able to control things that aren't even 100% water, which may include human beings!_ Of course, this could all just be speculation, but something told Percy that he was right.

"Do you not want me to go?" Percy whispered.

Chiron hesitated. "I think you should go no matter what. If there's anyone who can destroy hordes of monsters, it's you."

Percy wasn't sure that was a compliment.


	3. Spies in Central Park

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Percy, Piper, Jason, Nico, and Hazel begin their quest.

"You're doing _what?!_ "

Directly after dinner, Percy Jackson used the small fountain in his cabin to Iris Message Annabeth Chase. He tried his best to play down the danger of the quest he was about to embark on in less than ten minutes, but Annabeth wasn't having it.

"Percy, you are very likely the one the monsters are looking for!"

"I know that, but we can't let-"

"Don't give me excuses, Percy." Annabeth pressed her fingers on the bridge of her nose in exasperation. "I understand that a big part of the reason you'd prefer the Seven to find the monster HQ is because you don't want to feel responsible for whatever happens to the demigods on the quest; you don't want to be their burden."

She was right, of course. Annabeth Chase knew Percy Jackson better than anybody else- even better than his own mother. She knew that his fatal flaw was personal loyalty, and she could tell that Percy wanted to attend this mission largely for the reason of protecting his friends. He didn't want his friends to have to protect him.

"Annabeth, I know what I'm doing. I won't…I _can't_ let anyone risk their lives to save me."

"That's what friends are for, Percy! We want to help you, and if you let some of the other demigods do this quest-"

"No." Percy looked into Annabeth's grey eyes determinedly. "The Seven are more prepared for this; in order to defeat hundreds of monsters at their base, we need experienced campers."

He could see Annabeth getting defensive as her shoulders rose and eyes narrowed. "That's exactly the problem. If we only ever let 'experienced' campers go, then the others will never get a chance to prove themselves!" She was breathing heavily; Percy had touched a nerve. "I would have never gotten the chance to go on my first quest if you hadn't been so important! I probably would have lived most of my life in camp, and I'd have gone mad!" The daughter of Athena had been the first to volunteer for Percy's first quest back in middle school. Percy could still remember twelve-year-old Annabeth's determination to succeed, her lust for adventure, and her desperation to get out of Camp Half-Blood and prove herself. She had a good point, though. The other demigods would never grow if they never were given the chance to go on a quest.

"I understand that," Percy assured her. "If this were a different quest, then I would agree with you. However, we don't even know the extent of danger we're getting ourselves into, and sending first-timers could end up being a suicide mission. I've got Jason, Nico, Piper, and Hazel by my side, and I'm still anxious about this. There's too much unknown to send a new quester."

Annabeth knew Percy was right, but that didn't mean she had to be happy about it. After taking a deep breath, she smiled sadly at Percy through the screen of mist. "Then stay safe out there, Seaweed Brain. I'll see you when you get back."

Percy smiled too. "I'll do my best, Wise Girl."

Percy raised his hand to swipe through the mist, but Annabeth cut him off. "Percy…only go as far as is necessary, okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"Don't, um- just keep in mind what you're capable of. Only use the amount of power necessary to get the job done." Percy nodded in response. Annabeth was warning him not to repeat the fight with Misery.

"Will do. I love you," he said, ready to swipe through the Iris Message.

Annabeth blew him a kiss. "Love you too."

With that, Percy's hand cut through the mist and broke their connection. He slipped on a black hoodie and began packing a little black backpack with ambrosia, nectar, and Finding Nemo band-aids. The Seven had decided to wear all black for their night mission, which Nico had had no objection to. Percy, on the other hand, didn't own any black jackets, so Nico agreed to lend him one. The zipper had a tiny silver skull on it and was fortunately one of Nico's less death-themed articles of clothing.

When Annabeth had mentioned their encounter with Misery, the image of his girlfriend's horrified face flashed through his mind. That was the first time Percy had scared a friend like that- at least, he thought it was the first time. Had the others always been afraid of him? Was he that intimidating all the time? Sure, some people saw him just as a goofball, but what about in battle? How many people had he frightened before?

Jason Grace knocked on Cabin Three's door and called in, "Percy, you almost ready to go?"

"It's open," Percy responded, and Jason entered the room. It struck Percy that this was the first time Jason had been in the Poseidon Cabin. Jason stood for a second in the doorway, taking everything in. The fountain cast watery light around the room, which stood out even more now that the sun had set. The bottom bunk, which was Percy's, was a disaster, but the top one remained pristine. Tyson was a lot neater than Percy, that's for sure.

"Is that horn from the Minotaur you fought when you were twelve?" Jason inquired, pointing at the horn hanging on the wall.

"Directly from the old bull's head," Percy affirmed, zipping up his backpack and throwing it over one shoulder. "I'm ready."

Jason didn't seem to hear him. He was entranced by Tyson's metal mobile, which hung delicately from the ceiling. Each little figure showed a part of the quest in the Sea of Monsters. There was Annabeth fighting a hydra, a trident to symbolize Tyson being claimed, Percy and Tyson in a chariot, a Monster Doughnut logo, a guinea pig, a pirate ship, and funnily enough, Grover in a wedding dress. Tyson had given it to Percy as a birthday gift to commemorate their first quest together. On the wall opposite of the Minotaur horn, Percy had hung Tyson's shield and celestial bronze hippocampi. Each of Tyson's creations filled Percy with joy and a twinge of guilt. Percy hadn't treated Tyson well when he'd found out they were half-brothers, and someday Percy would give Tyson a gift that would show his appreciation for the lovable Cyclops. Maybe a giant sculpture of peanut butter- though Tyson would probably prefer the real thing.

"You've got quite the legacy," Jason mused, tapping the mobile and causing it to spin, reflecting more light about the cabin.

"Bro, you're one to talk," laughed Percy as he headed for the door. Jason grinned but didn't follow Percy. His mind seemed to be elsewhere.

"Jason, you okay?"

Percy turned around and placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Hey, what's wrong?" he asked softly.

Jason continued to stare at the mobile. "You've got a place here. People know you and what you've done, and you've established yourself as leader. People respect you and consider you the epitome of 'Greek Hero.'"

Jason turned to face Percy. "I'm Roman, but I feel Greek. I've proven myself to be a good guy, I like to think, but I still feel like- like an outcast here."

Percy opened his mouth to speak, but Jason cut him off. "Don't get me wrong, everyone has been really kind to me and treated me fairly, but…there's an undertone to everything. I can see it in their eyes; they don't think of me as one of their own."

"Hey."

Percy gave Jason a sympathetic smile. "Everyone at Camp Half-Blood respects you, trust me. And as for seeing you as a Greek, well, that may never happen. The whole Roman/Greek feud has only been lifted for six months so far, but eventually no one will care which side you're from. Nico used to be treated like an alien, but he's found plenty of friends now. Even I used to be the outcast, back when I was first claimed." Jason looked at him strangely.

"I was the second child of the Big Three to be born after their promise to not have children, and the first was a tree. The campers didn't want anything to do with me, but as time went by, I was welcomed too. It'll happen, bro. Just give it time."

Jason pulled Percy into a hug, then cleared his throat. "Thanks, bro. I think the team's waiting for us by Argus' bus."

"Well, let's not keep them waiting any longer."

The five demigods all packed into Argus' van, with Hazel taking the front seat, Percy and Nico in the middle row, and Piper and Jason in the way back. The van rumbled off on to the beaten road and shot into the night, headed straight for Central Park. Argus' multitude of eyes kept glancing around outside, keeping an eye out for any monsters on the loose. At one point, a deer sprinted across the road and Nico nearly chucked his Stygian Iron sword at it out the window. Everyone was tense and anxious about what was to come. The entire plan rested on how stealthy they could be; one slip up and everything would come crashing down.

When Argus pulled up next to Central Park, the setting was eerily silent. There was no wind blowing, no leaves rustling, no mortals strolling through the park. The demigods had only just filed out of the van when Argus saluted them and sped off back to camp, tires screeching as he swung around the corner.

"Goodbye to you, too," Piper mumbled.

"Was this really a good idea?" Hazel whispered, afraid to break the thick silence surrounding them.

"At this point, it's too late to turn back," Percy whispered. "So what do we do now?"

Nico pointed up into the trees above. "Let's each pick a tree, and if one of us sees a monster, we'll signal the others. Then we rendezvous at the first person's tree and track the monster."

"What should our signal be?" Jason inquired, taking his glasses off to clean them on his black, long-sleeved shirt.

"We could do a bird call," Piper suggested, raising her hands to her mouth to demonstrate.

Nico put up a hand. "Yeah, I'm not doing that."

"You got any better ideas?"

"We could drop leaves," Jason suggested. "It's silent enough to not bring attention to it, and if the monster sees it, it'll assume it's just a bird."

Percy shrugged. "Sounds good to me." The demigods spread out around the park, close enough to watch for falling leaves but far enough to cover a wide area of surveillance space. Percy jumped up to grab the lowest branches of his tree and hauled his upper half over the branch, swinging his right leg up next to fully pull himself up. He continued upwards for a few more feet until he was completely hidden. Inching forward, Percy found a small gap in the leaves through which he'd spy for monsters.

After ten minutes passed, Percy realized just how boring this was. The most interesting thing he'd seen was a pigeon that had pecked at a piece of trash for two seconds before flying off. For a kid with ADHD, hiding in the park was, well, no walk in the park.

That's when he heard it. An ear-splitting screech filled the air, emanating from somewhere off to his left. It was followed by a loud thump and a muffled yelp. Percy's mind leaped into overdrive. The scream had been male, so either Jason or Nico had just been attacked by who knows what. _Holy Hades, Holy Hades, Holy Hades,_ was all Percy could think. He ditched all precautions and dropped out of the tree, landing at first on his feet but then slipping on to his butt. Scrambling to his feet again, the son of Poseidon scanned Central Park for signs of his friends or any monsters, his heart racing as fast as Arion.

He saw nothing new. Nothing had been disturbed.

Nobody had moved.

No one made a sound.

Something's wrong. Something's very wrong. Something's-

_"PERCY!"_

Percy didn't have the chance to call out to Hazel before he was hit in the back of the head by something hard, knocking him completely unconscious.


	4. Uncontrollable

_Per…cy…_

_Percy…_

_Percy!_

_PERCY!_

The son of Poseidon gasped, sea green eyes flying open. The room smelled heavily of smoke, and Percy choked on the air he had sharply inhaled.

"Percy? Oh my gods, you're okay."

The voice calling his name was clearer now. It was Piper.

"You've been out for a long time, and we were beginning to think- oh gods, I'm just happy you're alive."

Percy blinked hard and squinted at his surroundings, trying to understand the blurry view before him. It took a few seconds, but eventually the greys and reds around him came into focus. The reds became walls, which were lined with torches, and the high, domed ceiling was clouded with dark grey smoke. The stone floor was riddled with ancient Greek writing and images of tiny people running into battle. It reminded Percy of New Rome's temple of prophesies, where Octavian used to work. About twenty-five yards away from Percy and Piper, a man stood hunched over a glass cauldron that cradled a shining, boiling liquid inside, looking as if someone had bottled a sunset and superheated it with evil.

"Where…" Percy croaked, his voice rough from the smoke and lack of use for the past- how long had been out?

"Well, we made it to the monsters' headquarters. Of course, in my mind I hadn't really imagined being tied up with ropes to uncomfortable chairs, but hey- questers can't be choosers."

Percy jerked forward, but indeed, his entire torso was wrapped in a cocoon of rope, tying him to the wooden chair he was presently seated on. His ankles were bound to the chair's front legs, and even though his hands remained free, his arms were bound in the ropes down to his wrists, leaving his hands, quite frankly, useless.

"How long was I out?" Percy asked as he continued to wriggle in his bonds, attempting to create any ease in the rope's cutting grip. His voice was returning to normal, but it stubbornly kept a slight wheeze from the cauldron's smoke.

"Honestly, I don't know. There's one window behind us, and it's still dark out, so that means we've either been out for one or two hours or the entire night. All I know for sure is that I've been awake for what feels like half an hour- the others shortly woke after myself- and that guy over there hasn't so much as looked at us yet."

"The others-" Percy glanced down past Piper on her left, and there sat Hazel, Jason, and Nico, all tied up like Piper and Percy. "Is everyone okay?" Percy called down the line, careful not to raise his voice high enough to attract the attention of the cloaked figure still muttering nonsense over the cauldron.

Jason nodded in response, and Hazel replied, "We're all okay; Nico's not awake yet, though." She glanced at her half-brother, worry written all over her face, but she knew there was nothing she could do about his condition at the moment. "How about you? You were out for a while too."

"Good. I'm fine." Percy's mind was distracted. _We're in too deep. We're already prisoners._ However, Percy kept his anxiety to himself. There was no use in worrying the others, since they all probably understood just how much trouble they were in already. So, Percy simply responded, "My head feels wet but other than that, I'm fine."

Piper leaned back as far as she could to peer at the back of Percy's head. "I think you were bleeding. Your hair's really matted in the back, and it looks sticky. Whatever that laestrygonian giant hit you with, it must've cut you."

"Laestrygonian giants? Are those what attacked us?" Percy wasn't looking at Piper as he spoke. His head was craned down towards his hands, where he was trying to stretch his fingers towards his pocket. _If only I could reach Riptide…_

"Yeah, Jason and I were the only ones who saw them attack."

Hazel coughed. "Guys, keep your voices down."

Quieter, Piper continued, "They crawled out of the sewer cap in the street, and before I could drop the leaves they were attacking. The first one grabbed Nico by the ankle and dragged him out of the tree. We didn't know what to do-"

"Didn't know what to do?" Percy almost laughed, eyes still focused on his outstretched fingers and wriggling wrists. "You help, that's what you do."

"We knew that laestrygonians are pack monsters, so where's there's one-"

"-more are sure to follow," Jason finished for her. "We couldn't afford for all of us to get captured."

Percy froze, taken aback by Jason's logic. He paused his escape efforts to look at Jason incredulously. "So, what? You were just going to let Nico get dragged off by cannibals?"

"We were trying to play it practical," Jason defended.

"You were playing it wrong," Percy snapped back. "Didn't you hear him scream? He was in trouble!"

"Guys!" Hazel pleaded, her voice kept to a hush. "Please, not-"

"And what do you suppose we should've done? Leapt down like you, only to get knocked out within seconds?"

"I was trying to save my friend! Besides, you're one to talk about getting knocked unconscious in a fight."

"Hey, I-"

 _"Stop it!"_ Hazel spat, angry and desperate to cease the argument.

At her exclamation, Nico groaned, his head rolling into an upright position. His dark brown eyes blearily blinked open. "What…"

"Finally!"

Everyone jumped at the sound of a new voice. The man in the cloak was staring at them, grinning from ear to ear in a most unnerving manner. He looked surprisingly young, maybe in his late twenties or early thirties. Percy had expected some old guy, like the wizard from Disney's _Sorcerer's Apprentice_. Or maybe Gandalf. Or Dumbledore.

Instead, this guy had lots of light brown hair that was frizzy enough to be the "before" in a shampoo commercial, and his eyes were too bright, as if he'd suffered multiple electrocutions but had kept some of the electricity in his eyes. His teeth were immaculately white- Percy could see that even from this distance- and his smile looked almost painful. While the man looked young, his cloak was far from it. It was stained by every color imaginable, torn and fringed at the ends that dragged on the ground.

"I was waiting for everyone to wake up before I began," he added. "You little demigods sure can sleep!"

"What exactly were you waiting to begin?" Piper asked nervously.

"My experiment!" The man unveiled a syringe from inside his cloak and proceeded to dip in it the orange, sunset-like liquid, filling it up. "This concoction is my greatest one yet; it'll kill at the opening- quite literally, ha!"

"What-" Nico gulped, eyes wide and fully awake now. "What does that stuff do?"

"This beauty right here," the man said, leaning on the rim of the glass cauldron, "is called Hyde. This is what- whoops, that's hot!" The man's arm shot off the cauldron, syringe still in hand. "This is what will allow us to unleash the true killer inside- or, in other words, bring out the Hyde in you Jekylls!" He let loose a short maniacal laugh, which quickly became a series of uncontrollable giggles.

"This guy's insane," Percy whispered. Then, yelling to be heard over the man's giggle fit, Percy called, "Hey, Einstein! When's this 'opening' you're talking about?"

"Well, Mr. Jackson," the mad scientist began, sauntering over to where the son of Poseidon sat defenselessly. "The opening is when I unveil the new you! Or, the new one of your friends!" The mad scientist took a sweeping look at his prisoners, still smiling that scary grin. "The monster armada has hired me, the infamous Dr. Derideo, to convert the most powerful demigod into a lean, mean, murdering machine as their secret weapon." Dr. Derideo gasped, covering his mouth comically. "Oh, I spilled the secret! Ha, well, you all were going to find out anyway- ha, ha!- because one of you lucky five get to turn- ha HA- turn on all of your friends and _KILL THE LOT!_ "

Dr. Derideo was leaning in Percy's face now, and Percy found himself to be truly terrified. This man- Dr. Derideo, whatever- was crazy. His eyes reflected years of knowledge, knowledge that drove him mad with power.

"I am a man of science, and when I was introduced to this world of myths, the door of knowledge was blown of its hinges! I can do so much, I know so much now!" The doctor pulled away from Percy, muttering to himself, "Knowledge, power, knowledge equals power, so much information, information equals magic…" His eyes were glued to the shining orange liquid in the syringe, and even though he was smiling, his eyebrows were furrowed. "Hmm. This should be a little more…pink. Yes, pink! Ha! I know what's missing!"

Dr. Derideo ran back to where he'd left the glass cauldron and stomped on a loose tile next to the fire blazing underneath. A large slab of stone sunk into the ground and was replaced by a metal table, an assortment of bronze tools laid out on top. The man emptied the syringe back in to the liquid and switched the medical tool for a pair of scissors and what looked like a grocery store barcode scanner.

"We need to leave. Now," Percy whispered. His heart was beating frantically. This man was close to completing his potion, and from the sound of it, said potion would have the power to break down all of the walls Percy had spent seven years building. He knew that if he were given that shot, his powers would be released like a dam exploding. He had a dam problem, that was for sure.

"Percy's right. We can't let anyone get that shot," Hazel agreed. She closed her eyes and looked to be in deep thought. After a few seconds, she reopened her eyes, sighing. "There are no precious gems nearby that I can call. And the smoke-" She was cut off by Jason's coughing. "Well, none of should be breathing this air in."

If Dr. Derideo were able to break down Percy's mental barriers holding back his power, bad things would happen. _I can't let him do this._

Jason took in a shaky breath. "This isn't healthy."

Percy's qualms about his "new" powers would disappear. _I can't let him do this._

Piper's shoulders twitched as she tried to loosen her bonds, to no avail.

Percy refused to control poison. Not yet. _I can't let them know. I can't-_

_The potion!_

The doctor was coming back, scissors and scanner in hand.

 _The potion!_ Percy's eyes widened as a plan formed in his head. If he could tip over the cauldron and spill the potion, Dr. Derideo couldn't use it.

"Let's see which of you is the perfect demigod for my potion!" Dr. Derideo approached Nico first, who grimaced but remained still has the madman held the scanner up in front of the son of Hades. It beeped.

Dr. Derideo whistled. "My, my. Quite the powerhouse, indeed."

Percy stopped listening and instead stared intensely at the potion twenty yards away. He imagined it was part of him. He could control it. He had to control it. This time, he had to ignore Annabeth's warnings.

The scanner reviewed Jason next. "My gods! Sorry, Mr. Di Angelo, but Grace here is above you on my readings." Dr. Derideo giggled. "Isn't science fun? I manipulated this mortal-made machine to measure magic! Ha! How ingenious!"

The potion began vibrate in the cauldron. _That's it!_ Percy thought to himself, stifling a smirk. _Come on…_

"Hazel, my dear, you are quite the demigod too! Not only a daughter of Pluto, but an apprentice of Hecate? However, you are marginally under Jason, so today is not your day," he tsked.

The cauldron budged.

"Doctor, your readings don't matter," Piper charm spoke, batting her eyes innocently at the insane man. "We aren't powerful enough, not for you."

Dr. Derideo laughed. "Ms. Mclean, my mind is far too full for your charm speak to take affect."

"More like your mind isn't sane enough for it to work," she mumbled as he scanned her.

"Piper, you are above average for the demigod standard, but Jason is still in first!"

The cauldron began to tip. _Come on!_

"Percy?" Dr. Derideo mused, following his line of sight.

 _Keep going!_ The cauldron leaned farther off its perch. _Kee-_

Dr. Derideo slapped Percy Jackson across the face, breaking his concentration. The cauldron of potion rolled back to where it sat before. Percy stared at Dr. Derideo, openmouthed and red-faced. The others were equally shocked.

"Don't push my buttons, child. Or my cauldrons, for that matter." For the first time that evening, Dr. Derideo wasn't smiling. He hefted his scanner up and held it in Percy's face. It beeped, and upon reading the results, the doctor's grin returned full force.

"Well, that _is_ interesting. You and Jason are about equal, power-wise, but you are quite a bit more unstable than he is. His powers are precise and controlled, while yours are restless and pushing to be used. How _interesting!_ Your core is fractured and ready to break, but you won't let it. And I, for one, don't like to keep things caged."

Dr. Derideo grabbed Percy by the hair and yanked him forward, much to the loud protests of Percy's friends. The madman lifted the bronze scissors dramatically and chopped off a chunk of black hair from Percy's bangs. Dr. Derideo shoved Percy back and speedily walked back his workspace, laughing the whole way. Once there, he dropped the hair into the cauldron and whooped as it simmered away, a pink tone spreading throughout the liquid.

Percy was shaking with anger and fear. This man was a menace, but he spoke the truth. Percy was ready to break.

"Percy, are you alright?" Jason asked cautiously. "You're shaking."

"This is bad," was all he could say.

"I know, and we'll get out of this. Just-"

"No, Jason, you don't understand. This is very, very bad. That potion is going to make me lose control, and that will most definitely lead to people getting hurt.

"We can fight this-"

"Can you fight _me?_ " Percy asked, his voice shaking along with his body. He sighed and hung his head back in defeat, eyes staring up into the smoke above. "I've only lost control once before in my life, and it ended with me exploding a volcano and causing the evacuation of thousands of people. People were injured. People could have _died._ And I did that when I was only fifteen."

It was quiet for a moment as that sunk in. "I don't remember anything like that in the news-" Piper began, but then she gasped. "Oh my gods- Mount St. Helens."

"That was me," Percy said quietly. He lifted his head and stared emptily forward. The memory of the eruption was one he liked to ignore. He had caused so much damage that day, and if he hadn't sent Annabeth away- oh gods. He watched absentmindedly as Dr. Derideo pushed yet another loose stone down, and up sprang a sink. Percy normally would've made some remark at how well equipped this mysterious lab was, but worry was eating away at his insides. Dr. Derideo washed the syringe's needle to clean it of the pervious version of the potion, then turned to re-

A sink.

There's a sink. And where there's a sink-

"Oh my gods." Percy couldn't help but smile. In order to have a sink, there had to be plumbing. In order to use plumbing, there needed to be water, and lots of it.

"What is it?" Hazel asked him, curious about his sudden mood swing.

"This building has plumbing. Oh my gods, we're saved," he laughed.

"You better hope those aren't your last words," Nico noted.

"No, the plumbing means there's water." Percy shut his eyes tight and sent out his senses. He could feel it, gallons of water racing through hidden pipes in the walls and floor. He'd hit the mother load.

Peeking out of one eye, Percy saw Dr. Derideo heading back towards the demigods. _It's now or never,_ Percy thought, and again shut his eyes. He didn't have time to be careful; he needed water now. There was that familiar tugging sensation in his gut, and he heard the pipes groaning as the water strained to get out. Percy didn't ease up and concentrated harder. _The sea does not like to be restrained,_ Percy reminded himself, and with that slogan in mind he pushed on. Then, he felt it. Just like in Tartarus, something inside him cracked.

The walls shattered, the floor was ripped to pieces, and Dr. Derideo's sink was blasted into the air. Gallons upon gallons of water flooded the room, swirling over every fixture, extinguishing every torch, and splashing up against the demigods.

"Percy!"

Percy turned to see who had called his name. Whoever it was, their urgent tone applied to the whole group. Everyone was still tied to the chairs, and the water was rising fast. He hadn't thought about that.

"You horrible little demigod!" Dr. Derideo shrieked, splashing around by his spilled cauldron, the potion swiftly being washed away by the rough waves. "You- ha!- you wicked little child!" The doctor was trying to salvage all of his belongings in the tide, and in his hands he currently held the scissors.

Before Percy knew what was happening, Dr. Derideo screamed and lurched in Percy's direction. I need those scissors, Percy thought, staring at the doctor's hand with a ferocity he'd never experienced before. Again, the doctor jerked forward, his hand that held the scissors dragging him through the rising sea of water.

" _Bring me the scissors,_ " Percy commanded, his gaze unrelenting as the doctor stumbled forward, screaming curses at the son of Poseidon.

"Percy, how are you doing that?" Nico yelled. At first, Percy mistook his tone as astonishment, but then he realized that Nico was horrified. Absolutely horrified.

It was too late now. Dr. Derideo was at Percy's feet, scissors held out before him as an offering. "Let me go, you insolent-"

" _Cut me loose,_ " Percy demanded, and the doctor was forced to do as he was told.

"It hurts!" Dr. Derideo exclaimed, but only his face was under his control. Percy controlled every limb; his heartbeat matched the demigod's, and his scissors sliced through Percy's bonds against his will. "Stop this! It hurts!"

The last rope was severed, and Percy snatched the scissors from the doctor and relinquished his control of the body. The doctor collapsed, sobbing, and disappeared beneath the waves.

Percy turned towards his friends, who were up to their shoulders in water but doused head to toe by the spray and onslaught of waves. Percy wanted to cry when he saw their faces. They were petrified in a portrait of terror, each face reflecting the same fearful expressions.

"I'm sorry," Percy choked out, stumbling forward to release his friends. "I'm sorry, oh gods, I'm sorry." Nobody spoke to him, and as he at last cut Nico free, they stood huddled in a group a few feet away from him. Percy reached out, but they took a step away from him. This felt like a sword through Percy's heart, and silent tears flowed from his sea green eyes. This was his ultimate fear, coming true. The very thing that kept him awake at night was standing before his eyes.

His friends saw him as a monster.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know I- I didn't want to know! Please, say something!" Percy pleaded, but before the other demigods could answer, a giant wave slammed into them, knocking them all down under the water. It was then Percy noticed the current dragging them towards the broken window. He didn't know how far of a drop it would be to the ground below, and he was about to stem the flow of water when he felt a rope around his throat.

Gasping under the water, Percy clawed at the rope, but it only seemed to tighten. He tried to call out to his friends, who were being washed out through the window, but no voice came out. Out of the corner of his eye, Percy caught a glimpse of a worn out sleeve flapping behind his head. Dr. Derideo had him captured, and together they surfaced up near the ceiling, where the water had risen to and the smoke was thickest.

Percy couldn't breathe, in the water or out. The air he did retrieve was clogged with smoke and worsened his condition. He felt a sharp pain on his shoulder that lasted for a few seconds, and as he began to black out, Percy heard, "I guess you didn't need my potion to become a monster."


	5. Crossing The Line

Even after Jason Grace was smacked into the ground on a wave of water, he didn't feel out of his trance. The water's current had washed he and his friends out of the broken window of Dr. Derideo's lab and dropped them spluttering on the muddy grass below, gasping for air. Jason knew there would be bruises on his shoulder and hip from the rough impact, but he was too dazed to feel the pain- although his blurry eyesight was a bit distracting.

_The way Percy had commanded the doctor…_

"Is everyone okay?" he heard Piper asking, her voice filled with worry as she rushed around the demigods and helped them to their feet. Jason watched her fuzzy figure silently count off how many demigods were there, mouthing each number as she went. Jason always thought that was a cute mannerism of hers, how she quietly mouthed what she was thinking, but right now his mind was elsewhere.

_The way Percy had controlled the doctor…_

Jason let out a small groan as he twisted his body into an upright position, leaning back on his elbows. Staring back up at the window above, Jason guessed that the fall was only ten feet or so- not too horrible, but still far enough to make him bruise and ache. Even now, a small stream of water continued to pour out of the window and splash in a growing puddle a foot away from Jason.

It didn't take long before Piper was at Jason's side, reaching out and pulling him to his feet. Piper's hair was soaked and plastered to her face, but she still looked beautiful, like a mermaid who had a thing for braids and feathers.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" she questioned as she examined his arms, running her fingers gently down them to check for cuts and bruises.

"I'm fine, really," Jason assured her, taking her shaking hands in his. "Everything's a little blurry right now, but that's most likely a result of hitting my head-"

"Uh, Jason?" Nico interrupted hesitantly, stumbling over to the couple and taking care not to put pressure on his right leg. "I think these might solve your problem." The son of Hades handed Jason a pair of cracked glasses with Imperial gold rims. "I, uh, found them after I stepped on them."

Jason took them and attempted to fit them on his head, but one of the sides was bent too far outwards, and the cracked left lens made seeing even harder than when he wasn't wearing them. He sighed but quickly gave Nico a half-hearted smile. "No worries. This isn't too bad." Jason's eyes flickered down to where Nico was using his sword as a cane. "How's your leg?"

Nico glanced down and softly shifted his leg before grimacing. "I think I sprained my ankle. I didn't land that fall all too well, but it could've been worse. Nobody's-"

"Where's Percy?" Hazel interjected from a few feet away, looking around frantically. "Percy?"

This got everyone's attention. They all called their missing friend's name, to no avail. A thick forest surrounded the demigods on all sides, with the stone building behind them. Percy should've been on the ground with them.

"Did anybody see him leave through the window?" Jason asked the crowd.

Hazel gasped. "Is he still _in there?_ "

"Oh my gods," Piper whispered. "You don't think-"

"He's not dead, if that's what you're thinking," Nico supplied. "However, if Dr. Derideo didn't drown in those tidal waves-"

"Then he got Percy," Jason finished with a gulp. "This wasn't the plan."

"At least we know he'll be able to defend himself pretty well," Piper commented under her breath, gazing up at the shattered window. The sun had just broken over the horizon, and it's fresh light glimmered in reflections on the remaining fragments of glass. The peaceful façade hid a terrible secret inside, and the half bloods didn't have the slightest idea what awaited their powerful friend within.

The others hadn't heard Piper's comment- or if they had, nobody responded- so Piper spoke louder. "Should we go back inside there to get him, or do you think Percy can get out on his own?"

"Of course we need to help hi-" Hazel began, but Piper quickly cut her off.

"Well, after that stunt he just pulled, I'm not so sure he needs saving just yet." Looking around, Piper turned to address the others with a sigh. "Look, I'm just going to come out and say what we're all thinking: Percy has way more power than we originally thought, and honestly, I think he took things too far in there."

"What exactly _was_ he doing?" Jason reflected, the image of Percy's intense expression flashing through his mind. Jason had never seen such a fierce light in those sea green eyes. "Or better yet, _how_ was he doing whatever that was? He's the son of Poseidon, not the son of…well, I don't even know a god that can control people!"

"My guess is that Percy was controlling his blood," Piper explained. "You know, since the human body is 75% water? That would theoretically give him 75% control over the human body." Jason gave her a quizzical look. "What? I took anatomy last year."

"That's a bit of a stretch, don't you think?" Jason replied, sliding his cracked glasses off of his face and staring at them in the sunlight. It was a casual gesture, one Jason hoped would convince the others that he wasn't freaking out on the inside- which, of course, he totally was.

Jason liked to give people the benefit of the doubt. He wanted to trust the people he met. He wanted to believe that everyone was good. He wanted to think that people with power like Percy Jackson would only ever use it for helping others.

He didn't want to be afraid of his best friend.

How could he have complete trust in someone who could force him to do anything against his will at any moment? The amount of responsibility that comes with that sort of power could be hard to handle for a kid with a temper. To put it lightly, Percy doesn't exactly have an award for being the most responsible demigod.

"I admit, the initial shock of Percy's…control over the doctor was pretty surprising, but the more I think about it, the more I understand," Nico said, his voice soft as if he was talking to himself. Then, he looked up and straight into each demigod's eyes in turn.

"Tartarus changes people. When you're down there, fighting for your life, you're pushed to the limit. You find yourself doing everything you can to survive, and sometimes…sometimes those things don't coincide with your morals." Nico's dark eyes grew distant and haunted, and the corners of his mouth turned down as he spoke. "I- I did some bad things down there- things I regret. And even after you're rescued from that hellhole, you aren't the same. My self-control sort of, well, _shattered_ down there, and I think that's what happened to Percy. Tartarus unlocked a new level of godly power within him, and we all saw how he reacted after he let Dr. Derideo go. He was just as afraid of himself as we were."

Hazel walked over to Nico's side and wrapped him in a hug of assurance. "You're right. We have to forgive him. He did it to save us, not because he enjoyed it."

Piper, however, still felt dubious about the whole matter. "He hurt Dr. Derideo, Hazel. That man may be a whack job, but he was begging Percy to stop, and he didn't. There's a line when it comes to using one's power, and Percy crossed it. You can't just…you can't just _control_ people like that."

"Isn't that what you do?" Nico retorted, eyes narrowed. Piper looked taken aback.

"That's different."

"Is it? Charmspeak is controlling a person's mind. Percy was controlling a person's body. Essentially, it's the same thing."

"Yeah, but Charmspeak isn't painful." Piper stepped forward. "I don't hurt people when I Charmspeak. Percy controlled someone with such force that he was pleading for him to stop. That's going too far."

"Sometimes people have to get hurt, Piper." Nico was inches away from Piper's face now, standing on his tiptoes to be eye level with her but still leaning on his left side to keep any weight off of his sprained ankle. "Dr. Derideo was the bad guy. If he was a monster, would you still be fighting in his defense?"

"Monsters have a higher pain tolerance," Piper informed Nico, but her voice had a sharp edge to it. "They also regenerate. Dr. Derideo is human. Half-bloods don't hurt mortals- or other half-bloods."

"There are times we have to hurt half-bloods! We are all ultimately fighting for the greater good, and that means sometimes people get hurt." Nico's voice cracked, and he felt Hazel's hand on his shoulder, pulling him away from Piper. The son of Hades shifted his gaze to the ground. "I'm just saying I understand what might've been going on in Percy's head. When Reyna, Coach Hedge, and I were traveling with the statue, we ran into Bryce Lawrence."

Jason's eyes widened at this information, but he was the only one. The name meant nothing to Piper or Hazel, one of whom was Greek and the latter too new to Camp Jupiter to have known the criminal.

"Bryce had come to arrest us and take us as hostages to Octavian. He mocked Reyna, and I lost all control. I unleashed a wave of pain on his soldiers, and I turned him into a ghost and banished him to the Underworld."

Piper, Hazel, and Jason all gaped at Nico. Nobody had bothered mentioning that little detail to them after the war.

"What I did was just as bad as what Percy did, maybe worse. The only reason Dr. Derideo didn't pick me- or Jason, for that matter- is because Percy is more unstable."

The others didn't say anything. They didn't know what to say.

"If Percy is more unstable than me when I attacked Bryce, then I never want to see what that Hyde potion is going to do to him. It'll only worsen his condition, and this time, his morals will be gone. Percy's power made him a huge asset to Camp Half-Blood because he was loyal to us; he would never dream of hurting a friend. With those barriers lifted…" Nico didn't finish. He didn't need to.

"Then we have no time to lose," Jason declared, wringing out his black long-sleeves. "There's nothing we can do about Percy being as powerful as he is, so we might as well embrace it. We need him back on our side."

Piper tucked her hair behind her ear and unsheathed Katroptis. "Nico's right. Percy's actions, although I don't agree with them, were meant to save us. The best we can do is return the favor.

Hazel and Nico both nodded and took their spatha and sword in hand, respectively.

"Friends don't abandon each other," Hazel affirmed.

"Especially in giant, guarded monster HQs," Nico added.

"Di immortales," muttured Jason. "I forgot about that. We need a plan, and fast. I don't know how long we have until Dr. Derideo whips up some more Hyde and poisons Percy."

As everyone pitched in their ideas, ranging from dressing up as a Monster doughnut sales person to invading with a skeleton army, the demigods moved into the cover of the trees, where they couldn't be spotted. As he started for the shade, Jason stepped in a mud puddle and was startled to feel something crack under his foot. Bending down, the son of Zues shuffled his fingers through the sticky mud until they met with a string of beads. He pulled the mud-soaked item out and wiped it off on his pants.

It was a Camp Half-Blood necklace, complete with six beads of varying designs on a frayed leather cord. Jason hadn't worn his beads on the quest, so he knew it wasn't his; he also only had one bead on his leather necklace. Jason was about to ask the others if theirs had dropped when he noticed the middle bead, which was black and had a painted trident in the center. A jagged crack now ran straight across the emblem. Only one demigod on this quest had that bead.

Tucking the necklace in his jean pockets, Jason rejoined his friends. He figured that the Camp Half-Blood memento had been washed out of the HQ along with the demigods; it must've fallen off of Percy during the fight.

Or maybe it was ripped off.

Whatever had happened, Jason knew one thing for sure. Percy was in danger, and if they didn't get to him in time, _everyone_ would be in danger.


	6. Jekyll and Hyde

When Percy woke up, he wasn't expecting to be lying in a bed with fuzzy blankets pulled up to his chin. He definitely wasn't expecting to feel relaxed and well rested. He was, however, expecting to find drool on his pillow.

Cautiously pulling himself into a seated position, Percy looked around the mysterious room he had been sleeping in. Where am I? he thought, taking in the room with wide eyes. It was circular, with all the walls, ceiling, and floor made out of a dark grey stone. There were no windows, and the only door was made of metal. He spotted a vanity, a dresser, and even a table and chair placed evenly around the outskirts of the room. The place was immaculate, which was an incredibly foreign look compared to all of the places Percy had slept in his lifetime- including his own room. An oddly shaped lantern hanging from the ceiling cast a low light around the room, giving everything a red, maybe even orange tint. It looked like a sunset-

 _Sunset. Potion. Doctor._ The entire encounter with Dr. Derideo flooded Percy's brain, and he shot straight out of bed, tripping on the blankets that caught on his foot. He landed face-first on the floor but quickly recovered and scrambled back onto his feet.

 _I have to get out of here!_ Percy thought frantically, and his first instinct was to try the door. He sprinted for the only entrance into the room, and tried to open it. Its cold, silver handle didn't budge, but Percy kept trying. He yanked it again and again before finally pushing away in frustration.

"Come on," he muttered, searching the room for any possible exit. Percy ran over to the dresser and dragged it away from the wall- nothing behind it. Next, he rushed over to the table, checking above and below for a button, a switch, anything that could possibly let him out. Percy was breathing hard, and he felt each heartbeat drumming against his chest. Dropping to the ground, he flung up the fallen covers and checked underneath the bed for a trapdoor. Again, nothing was under there.

Percy was almost hysterical. He had already worked out that Dr. Derideo had stabbed him with the syringe back in the lab, but how long did Percy have until the potion took affect? Had it _already_ affected him? He didn't feel any urges to kill people; in fact, he didn't feel any difference at all. Percy still wanted to save his friends, and he wasn't going to let some stupid locked room stop him.

The only place Percy hadn't scoured from top to bottom by now was the vanity. He tugged open the single drawer and saw only a hairbrush inside, then proceeded to slam it shut again. No help. He yelled in frustration and sunk down into the chair that accompanied the vanity, head in his hands.

Where were his friends? Had they all made it out that window in Dr. Derideo's lab? Had they been captured? Were they looking for him? Percy groaned when he thought about the whole event. Their plan to sneak in and sabotage the monsters had majorly backfired. Not only were they captured within fifteen minutes of beginning their quest, they were now separated with no plan on how to find each other.

Percy was angry, but not with his friends. He was angry with himself. He had let himself become a distraction; instead of continuing the mission, his friends had to find Percy first. Not only that, but Percy had lost control with Dr. Derideo. Controlling the doctor had happened naturally- and that scared Percy. It was taxing on his energy- Percy doubted he could hold control any longer than five minutes at best- but at the same time, he couldn't stop. He was so focused, so fixed on getting free, that he had thrown his morals out the window. How could he have let himself get so carried away? And the look on his friends' faces…

"What am I going to do?" he moaned, running his hands through his unkempt hair. Percy then peered through his fingers at his reflection in the vanity's mirror and nearly screamed.

His eyes were glowing.

Percy launched out of the chair, knocking it the ground with a loud bang, and shoved his face right up in front of the mirror. Where there had once been sea green, there was now molten lava- no pupils or irises, just two shining eyes of pure orange.

"Oh gods," Percy whispered, leaning across the vanity as far as he could and staring into his own unnerving gaze. "It's the Hyde." The potion had worked, and apparently it was in full effect. _Why don't I feel different?_ Percy wondered, taking a step back. He looked at his hands, turning them over and examining them for any signs of change. There was no sense of villainy, no sudden influxes of power. Percy held his hands closer, and he could see the slight shadows around his fingers cast by the light of his eyes. It was weird knowing that his eyes were glowing solid orange, yet he could see perfectly.

A sudden knock on the door startled Percy, and he stepped back only to trip and fall on the chair. He heard keys jingling outside, a click, and the metal door swung open. In the doorway stood a Cyclops as tall as the doorframe, clothed completely in gleaming golden armor. His skin was a burgundy color, and his hair looked like burned red licorice glued to his scalp.

"Glad to see you're awake," the monster commented as he ducked through the doorway.

"At this point, I'm getting used to waking up in captivity," Percy replied, using the corner of the bed to pull himself up.

"There's no need for snide remarks, Perseus Jackson," the Cyclops chided in a low, rumbling voice. "We are on the same team now. Why else do you think you were given such a nice room?" He began to walk towards Percy, but Percy snatched Riptide out of his pocket and uncapped it, a celestial bronze blade now separating the monster and the demigod.

"I am not on your team," Percy growled, keeping the sword raised in defense.

"Your eyes show otherwise," the Cyclops smirked.

Percy's eyes narrowed, but he made no comment. "Who are you, and what have you done to me?"

"I am Callisthenes, but to you I am Commander."

Percy laughed. "Yeah, right. Look, Calloused Knees, there's no way I'm going to help you or your monster army kill everyone. I _will_ protect my friends- or die trying."

Callisthenes grimaced. "You're a disgusting excuse for a demigod, but unfortunately, we need you to win this war."

"Well, getting me to join you is a hopeless cause, so why don't you just move aside"- Percy gestured with his sword- " and I'll let myself out."

Callisthenes chuckled. "Lucky for us, we don't need to convince you to join- Dr. Derideo's potion has taken care of that. I must give him credit for your transformation; he really is an impressive man- for a mortal, that is." The Cyclops reached behind himself and grabbed a rolled up piece of paper that had been tucked into his belt. As he unrolled it, he continued to explain. "By injecting you with Hyde, Dr. Derideo broke down the walls you built up to regulate your power. Now whenever you control water, it's all or nothing. The potion also doubled your endurance; you'll be able to do things for a longer period of time without draining yourself of energy. However, those aren't even the biggest perks."

Callisthenes didn't show Percy what was on the scroll, but instead he turned around and pinned it to the far wall using a small silver knife. "The biggest improvement resulting from the Hyde is that your first instinct upon seeing another demigod is to kill."

The Cyclops stepped back and revealed the image. Printed upon the paper was a headshot of none other than Jason Grace, son of Zeus and one of Percy's best friends.

It was at that moment that Percy felt a surge of absolute and utter loathing. Heat spread throughout his body, and Percy didn't need to look in the mirror to know that his eyes were burning fiercely. The dirty, rotten, wicked coward on the scroll was the subject of Percy's hatred. He hated Jason more than anything else in the world, and he wanted him dead. Percy's arm reeled back, Riptide in hand, and he chucked the weapon straight at Jason's face. The blade impaled him in between the eyes- a perfect shot.

Laughing, Callisthenes tore the photo down, and as soon as it was out of sight, Percy gasped for air. The heat disappeared as quickly as it came, and Percy's knees gave out. He stumbled towards the bed, where he grasped the bed frame for support.

"What the _hell_ was that?" he shuddered, glaring up at Callisthenes through horrified eyes. Percy had had no control whatsoever over himself. Those thoughts…those horrible thoughts weren't his. How could they be? It was terrifying, knowing how at the monsters' mercy he was.

"That, Perseus, is why we need you. The sight of any demigod in the world will trigger the Hyde, and you won't be able to stop yourself from stabbing them through the heart." The Cyclops unhooked an axe from his back and mimicked the motion. "You have a compulsion to end the lives of every half-blood on this planet, and when we arrive at Camp Half-Blood and eventually Camp Jupiter, there will be quite the massacre." Callisthenes strode over to Percy and offered him a hand to help him up. The son of Poseidon swatted it away and pulled himself up on his own.

"I hate you," Percy spat. "Possessing people like this…it's _wrong._ "

"Says the boy who did the very same thing this morning to Dr. Derideo."

Callisthenes words were like a punch in the stomach.

"Actually, it is because of the havoc you wreaked earlier today that we have our only setbacks in the master plan. Because of you, the rest of the Hyde was washed away. It's meant to be administered in doses, each shot lasting only 12 hours. The doctor insisted that he couldn't extend the time frame," the Cyclops grumbled. "He's down in his lab cooking some more so that we have enough for the siege. Your little stunt is also the reason why the other demigods got away; we had planned on having you murder them at the Opening to prove your forced alliance, but alas, our spectacle has been canceled. We'll just have you introduced normally now."

"They got away," Percy breathed in relief, head hanging to hide his smile. "Thank the gods."

"We have guards positioned at every entrance, so they won't be free for very long," Callisthenes added as he reattached his axe to a strap on his back. "As for you, we need to get you fitted for armor. We can't have our secret weapon getting killed in his first fight. After that, we will join the rest of the army to go over the plan. Now," Callisthenes asked, cracking his knuckles for emphasis. "Will you cooperate, or I am going to have to use force?"

Percy glanced behind Callisthenes at the open door. He thought about making a run for it, but quickly decided against it. Even if he managed to escape past all the monsters infesting the place, he had no idea where he was in the HQ or how to get out. This was all assuming he could get past Callisthenes in the first place. Besides, if he played along now, he could learn the specifics of the monsters' Master Plan and prepare the camp for what was coming.

"I'll cooperate," Percy said at last, holding out his hand for a handshake. " _Commander._ "

Callisthenes grinned, revealing yellow and crooked teeth. "Perfect." He returned the handshake, his massive grip engulfing Percy's hand. "Grab your sword, and we'll head downstairs." The Cyclops proudly sauntered towards the door, feeling that it was he who persuaded the son of Poseidon to join his army. Percy walked over to where Riptide was impaled in the wall and slowly put his hand on the grip. I tried to stab Jason, he thought with a shudder, and tugged the sword out of the stone.

Together Callisthenes and Percy left the room, locked the door, and headed down a spiral staircase. Percy figured that his room must've been at the top of a tower. At the bottom of the staircase was a portcullis blocking the exit, and Callisthenes used his ring of a hundred keys to unlock it, heaving it upwards to let them through.

 _These guys really don't want me getting out,_ Percy mused as the portcullis lowered behind them. They then found themselves in a hallway lined with torches and doors every five yards. These walls were also made of stone, but the ground was creamy marble, and a purple carpet lined the center of it, running endlessly in both directions.

"This is the Quarters Hall. Each door leads to a monster's living quarters." As if on cue, a blast of flames fluttered out from underneath the closest door. Percy stifled a yelp.

"Please don't tell me you have a dragon in there," Percy remarked, making sure to follow Callisthenes on his left side, opposite from the flaming door.

"No, no. Our dragon got sick last week, so we sent him home to rest. That's probably just another angry empousa."

The two continued down the hallway in silence, eventually turning left, then right, then left again. The hallway décor rarely changed as they continued through hall after hall, stone staircase after stone staircase. The silence and monotony of their journey gave Percy plenty of time to think.

As much as Percy wanted to get out of this crazy castle of crooks, he figured it was best if he didn't see his friends until tomorrow. Unless Dr. Derideo finished Batch #2 of the Hyde- what, he had 8 hours left at this point? -, Percy would be free from its curse sometime this evening. Then, he could truly devise an escape plan. He didn't want to risk running off now because he might see his friends; ironically, that was the last thing he wanted.

Percy wasn't himself. His reaction to Jason's picture was terrifying; Jason was a great guy, and all of Percy's respect for his bro vanished upon the sight of his face. The last time he had felt that sort of anger was when he fought Misery in Tartarus, and at least then he'd had a reason to be angry. Percy didn't want to imagine what would unfold if his friends found him now. He would attack at a moment's notice, and he'd have no way of warning his friends why. He could seriously injure one of them- he could _kill_ one of them. And after he killed one, he wouldn't stop. Percy would be left standing in a pool of his friends' blood, with no one to blame but himself.

Percy gagged at the thought of his friends' gory deaths, and Callisthenes cast him a side-glance before looking forward again. The finally stopped in front of a door at the base of the third staircase they'd descended. It was wooden, unlike all the other ones, and above it there was a bronze plaque: "Armory."

Callisthenes knocked, not bothering to use his keys, and in two seconds a familiar looking girl with vampire fangs, flaming hair, and mismatched legs pulled the door open.

" _Kelli?_ " Percy complained.

"Percy Jackson," the empousa snarled.

"Glad to see you two are already acquainted," remarked Callisthenes gruffly.

"Weren't you stomped to death in Tartarus?" Percy asked, crossing his arms.

"Weren't you stuck down there with your know-it-all girlfriend?"

"Lucky for me, I got out."

"So did I."

"Not without getting squashed first."

"You-"

Callisthenes cleared his throat, and both Kelli and Percy looked angrily up at him. "Kelli here will be measuring you for your armor. He's on our team, Kelli." Callisthenes glared at the empousa, who stomped her donkey leg in protest. "There will be no killing- for both of you."

"Commander, you can't expect me to work with him!" Kelli whined. "He's totally not worth keeping alive."

Percy rolled his eyes. "You're no prize, either. Trust me, the thing I want more than anything right now is to run Riptide right through your chest, but neither of us are going to get what we want."

"I'm not asking you to be friends," Callisthenes continued. "He needs armor, and you are one of our best blacksmiths, Kelli. Get the job done." Callisthenes pushed Percy and Kelli into the armory and was preparing to exit when he looked back over his shoulder and added, "I had one of our men use magic to make the plumbing Perseus-proof, so don't get any ideas." He then shut the door with a final _thud._

"Let's just get this over with," grumbled Kelli, stomping over to the center of the room, where a circular pedestal and trifold mirror were placed. The room was one of the more brightly lit rooms in the HQ; there were two torches on every wall, and the room wasn't much bigger than his mom's apartment. The low ceiling made it feel even smaller. Stacks of cloth and piles of scrap metal and unfinished weaponry lined the walls, and swords and axes of every shape and size were hung around the room, the light of the fires glinting off their bronze and gold blades. The room was extremely cold, however, and Percy spotted a grate on the ceiling that must have been for air conditioning. _This place must've undergone some serious renovation in the past decade,_ Percy thought to himself.

Kelli was rummaging in a toolbox by the pedestal, and she pulled out a measuring tape. Then, noticing that Percy hadn't moved, sighed exasperatedly and waved him over. Percy cautiously walked over to the pedestal, and at Kelli's direction, stepped on top. She continued to mumble angrily under her breath, but didn't say anything directly to him, as she began measuring his legs.

Percy examined himself in the mirror in front of him, its three parts giving him three reflections. His black hoodie had a tear by his shoulder, and his jeans were dirty and ragged. His hair looked like he'd been caught in a hurricane, and he had a rope burn around his neck from when Dr. Derideo tried to capture him. That's when Percy noticed a crucial detail missing from his appearance: his Camp Half-Blood necklace was gone. He reached up and rested a hand by his collarbones, where it should have been. Had it fallen off? Had Dr. Derideo yanked it off during their fight? Percy felt like someone had taken a knife and carved out an important part of him. That necklace was a symbol of his connection to Camp, his finding a place in the world where he was safe. He felt vulnerable without it.

"Put your arms out," Kelli ordered, and Percy did as he was told as she measured his chest and arms. He noticed in the mirror when she stopped and stole a glance at his face before continuing to measure.

"It's a shame you're not a monster," she tsked. "You're pretty cute."

Percy blushed and pulled his arm back in. "Uh, how long is this going to take?"

"Almost done," she answered, stepping up on the pedestal in front of Percy. She was close- way too close for Percy's comfort- as she measured his head for helmet size. "You know, I like you better with those blazing orange eyes than those watery green ones."

"Okay, we're done here," Percy announced, stepping backwards and off the pedestal. Kelli hopped down and headed over to a large table on the back wall that was covered with more scrap metal, leather, and even some finished pieces of armor.

"Do you work here alone?" Percy asked, observing the incredible variety of weaponry adorning the walls. "I thought that forging armor and weaponry was more of a Cyclops thing."

"Other monsters can forge too, you know. I would totally only trust another empousa for repairs on my mechanical leg." She continued to work at her table, back turned to Percy, and for a few minutes they stood in silence.

Percy took a seat on the pedestal, making sure to face away from the mirror, and rested his arms on his knees. He didn't want to see his eyes. He didn't want to think about what was going on. All he wanted was to be sitting in Cabin Three with Annabeth, sharing a cup of hot cocoa and watching Beauty and the Beast like they did every Friday. It was Annabeth's favorite movie because she related to Belle's fascination with literature and independent personality. Percy always made the joke that if she was Belle, that'd make him the beast. Now Percy was wondering how true that statement really was.

The thought of hot cocoa made him realize how hungry he was; he hadn't eaten since dinner at Camp Half-Blood last night, and by now it was nearing noon.

Sparks flew at Kelli's table as she wielded some celestial bronze together, hammering at pieces with a pent-up anger that, if they weren't under a forced treaty, she would probably have directed at him.

"Thank you, by the way," Percy called over to Kelli, "for making my armor and all."

"It's not like I've got much of a choice," she retorted, slamming the hammer down once more. "Callisthenes insists that we make you feel welcome because you're 'on our side' and 'our secret weapon' and all that, but it isn't easy when you've killed like half of us before."

"I don't want to be here any more than you want me to," Percy shrugged, trying to act nonchalant. He had an idea. "In fact, I'm sure that lots of the other monsters wouldn't mind if I happened to disappear."

Kelli paused her work, setting the piece of metal she was working on in a bucket of water to cool.

"Let's make a deal: you tell me how to get out of here, and I'll tell Callisthenes that you tried to stop me but I got away. You don't have to put up with me, Callisthenes won't be mad at you, and I can go home. Everybody's happy."

Kelli laughed, but it was dry and without humor. "If I wanted you to disappear, I'd just kill you." She pulled the metal out of the water- Percy could tell that it was a breastplate- and picked up all of the other pieces she had altered. "Unfortunately, Callisthenes is right. You're our best bet on winning this war, so I'm going to have to keep you around a little while longer."

Kelli carried the finished set of armor over to Percy and motioned for him to stand back up on the pedestal. The went quickly around, snapping and tying bronze to his body, fitting him with a sheath for Riptide, and handing him his helmet to try on. Sliding it on over his messy hair, Percy finally looked in the mirror- and didn't recognize himself.

The helmet had a short, black plume, and on the sides were bronze scales like a fish. His breastplate was fairly regular, except over the sternum was a large trident emblem. The other pieces were standard, and Percy was surprised to see how well everything fit. Kelli worked just as fast-maybe even faster- than Tyson. However, when Percy wore armor Tyson created, he felt protected and honored to be wearing something Tyson made just for him. He felt proud to be a demigod. Now, looking at the menacing man in the mirror, he felt like the villain.

Kelli whistled at her own work. "That suits you well. It even brings out your eyes."

She was right. The shadow the helmet cast over his eyes made them stand out even more, glowing like two fires in the dark; it was intimidating. Percy immediately removed the helmet and cocked it under his right arm.

Percy opened his mouth to speak, but a rumbling and banging from the ceiling cut him off. The sound traveled down the length of the room, each boom shaking dust down from the stones above. Kelli and Percy' heads turned as the sound made its way down the room before disappearing altogether.

"What the Hades was that?" Percy asked.

Kelli shook her head in confusion. "No idea. Probably just another monster making his way to the meeting- which we should be getting to."

Together they left the armory and headed back up the staircase, down a hall on their left, then turned left again. Nothing was said, and the only noise came from Percy's armor as he walked and Kelli's odd legs. _Clank. Thump. Clop. Shing. Thump. Clop._ They were a cacophony of clashing noise. Every once in a while the groan from the ceiling could be heard as well, but Percy just passed it off as the sound of more monsters making their way through the castle.

It didn't take long before they reached a giant pair of double doors, nearly three times Percy's height. Kelli reached for the golden handle but hesitated, fingers hovering over the metal.

"Are you okay?" Percy asked, confused.

"Look, you hate me- and trust me, the feeling's mutual- but at least _consider_ helping us win? I know you don't have a choice and all, but, like, we have our own lives too. We're done getting put down by you stupid half-bloods, and it's time we end your reign. So, when you're in there, try and actually be helpful, 'kay? Think about why we're doing this in the first place, and maybe you'll come around and see things from our point of view. Remember that next time you stab one of us."

On that note, Kelli heaved open the giant door and pushed Percy inside. "Introducing Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon, blah blah blah." She swiftly slammed the door shut, leaving Percy awkwardly in the spotlight.

Before him stood a group of giants- six of them, to be precise- standing around a large table covered in maps. It would've seemed like a typical battle plan meeting except for the fact that these giants were at least twenty feet tall, and they're table was ten feet.

"There's the man of the hour!" boomed one of the giants, who knelt down and put his hand on the floor for Percy to step on. "Perseus Jackson!"

"Hi guys," Percy squeaked, then cleared his throat. "Uh, what's up?" He climbed on to the giant's blue, calloused hand and was lifted up onto the table, where the giant dumped him right on a map. Percy felt like Tom Thumb, if Tom Thumb had ever had to deal with monster armies, giants, and rebellions.

"Let us begin, shall we?" called a seventh member, who was seated in a chair on the far side of the table. It was Callisthenes, who was half the size of the giants but too dignified to sit on the table. "As you all know, Percy is our key to victory against those disgusting demigods."

This was received with cheers all around; one giant slapped Percy on the back, which knocked the wind out of him.

"Tomorrow at noon, we will take our forces down into Manhattan, where we will head directly for Camp Half-Blood. There, we will split up into four groups. Hectamedes-"

"Yes!" yelled a giant to Percy's right. He had green skin and a nose as pointy as Pinocchio's. "I will take the empousai, dracanae, and hellhounds to the right flank."

"Good," Callisthenes affirmed. "Aralus, you lead-"

"The gorgons, laistrogonyians, and Echidna to the left flank." Aralus had a smug grin that reminded Percy of every bully he'd ever fought that thought of himself as Hera's gift to the world.

"Forterae, you will bring the rest of the monsters directly up the front- straight for Thalia's tree." Forterae- a big indigo-colored giant- didn't respond; she simply nodded and crossed her arms.

"I, Callisthenes, and Perseus will approach from the sea."

"Why don't I go alone?" Percy interrupted, making his way over to the map in the center of the table. It detailed the entirety of Camp Half-Blood, everything from the lava wall to Rachel's Oracle cave. Percy stood on the beach and pointed at the water. "I can handle the water on my own."

"I don't trust you enough," Callisthenes responded with a shrug.

 _At least he's honest,_ Percy grimaced. He had hoped that on his own, he could remain underwater and never attack- if he didn't see the demigods, he wouldn't be compelled to fight. Now, he had to revise his plan.

"I will have Percy land on the shore first as a distraction; the demigods will surround him, completely enthralled by the arrival of their lost friend. Then, Percy will summon the waves and drown them as a group." Callisthenes relayed his plan eagerly, a vicious glint gleaming in his eyes.

"Then, as they try to recover, he will allow the rest of us inside the magical borders, and then the battle will truly begin!"

The giants whooped and clapped, yelling with excitement at the thought of demigod blood. Percy went pale. Camp Half-Blood had no idea of the extent of danger coming their way, and Percy would be at the head of it.

"Let's calm down," Callisthenes grinned, gesturing around for silence. "Once inside, Forterae-"

Callisthenes's voice faltered as a loud groan erupted from the ceiling and dust rained down. It was the same sound that had been working it's way around the Headquarters, and now it was directly above them. The giants and Callisthenes were just as confused as Percy, but they had little time to ponder the possibilities before the stones gave out and plummeted down to the table below.

A rain of dust poured down, accompanied by anonymous screams, and a metal chute that must have been an air duct collapsed from the ceiling. It landed right in front of Percy with a resounding _crack,_ banged and busted, and then burst open, revealing four dirty demigods. The dust settled, and on the map sat Jason Grace, Nico Di Angelo, Hazel Levesque, and Piper Mclean.

"Uh, hello everyone," Piper began, looking around with wide eyes.

"Percy!" Hazel exclaimed, but she was met with a stoic response.

"Percy, what's wrong with your eyes?" Jason gasped, slowly standing up. He reached out for his friend, but Percy batted his hand away and quickly unsheathed Riptide. He felt nothing but rage, an anger that could not be controlled, and he grabbed the son of Zeus by the collar of his black shirt.

"Prepare to die, Jason Grace."


	7. A Taste of War

_"Holy Hera!"_

Jason Grace heaved his legs upwards and kicked Percy in the stomach, launching himself backwards and ripping free from Percy's grip. Thrown off by Jason's momentum, both demigods scrambled to regain their footing and stood to face each other once again.

"Percy! What's going on?" Jason begged, taking a step backwards for each step Percy took forwards. "Is it the Hyde? Is that why your eyes are glowing?"

"Of course it's the Hyde!" boomed Aralus, slamming his giant vein-covered hands on the table and bellowing a deep laugh. The impact of his hands sent tremors through the table, making Nico, Hazel, and Piper stumble backwards; Nico tripped over the fallen air vent, sending the freshly-settled dust back into the air. "Whenever Perseus sees a demigod, he is forced to kill. Why else would he turn on his own friends like this?"

With a powerful yell, Percy charged at the only demigod left standing in front of him. Jason swiftly sidestepped and had second to breath before the son of Poseidon was on him again. Imperial gold clashed against celestial bronze over and over, neither demigod letting the other gain an advantage.

Nico, Hazel, and Piper had a challenge of their own. Aralus had balled his hands into fists and was pounding down around the demigods, trying to squash them like spiders. It looked disturbingly like a giant game of Whack-A-Mole.

"Warriors!" Callisthenes grinned, gesturing around at the spectacle before him. All of the giants, save for Aralus, turned to listen to their commander. "This is our first taste of battle- our practice round, so to speak. _It is time to spill the first blood of war!_ "

Forterae smiled menacingly at the half-bloods scrambling before her, and with a dramatic sweep, she brushed the maps, papers, and broken air vent off the table. Nico jumped over each roll of paper and ducked under the occasional flying pencil, while Hazel ran up each roll as if she was surfing the tidal wave of charts and documents. The indigo giant proceeded to pull a silver dagger out of her bushel of black hair- storing weapons in hair seemed to be a common giant thing- and brutally stabbed the table, barely missing Piper. The wood of the table splintered underneath the blade, and the torches on the wall cast dancing shadows across the desk that flickered around the weapon. The giants and Callisthenes laughed at the shock clearly showing on Piper's face.

A pure white giant draped in golden cloth and the blue giant that had picked up Percy earlier brought out daggers of their own- these ones gold- and joined Forterae in impaling the table wherever a demigod appeared. The _thud shink_ of the knives being stuck and pulled out of the wood echoed around the room, and the monster's laughter added to the cacophony. Hazel yelped as the white giant's knife nearly cut her in half, fortunately just grazing the back of her dark jacket.

Jason continued to battle Percy one on one on their side of the table while the sixth giant- a big ugly orange beast- watched and cheered Percy on. Jason jabbed and Percy deflected; Percy lunged and Jason parried. The two were evenly matched, and they continued to lock swords and avoid being speared by each other as the others battled the giants.

"Percy," Jason pleaded, knocking Riptide away from his heart for the fifth time. "Listen to me. Fight back. You-" Jason sucked in a breath and hopped back a foot as Percy's sword swung uncomfortably close to his stomach. "You can fight this. Listen to your heart- listen to _me!_ "

"I don't listen to good-for-nothing jerks like _you,_ " Percy growled, swiping Riptide repeatedly, each time a millimeter closer to Jason's chest. "You all deserve to die." Percy jumped towards Jason and sliced him on his shoulder; Jason reeled back and deflected the next swing- barely. Jason looked up into Percy's burning orange eyes and swallowed hard. Where he usually saw a compassionate, loyal friend, he saw a ruthless killer. That usual a glint of mischief had been replaced with a flash of murder.

Jason's gaze hardened, and he changed his approach to fighting Percy. He couldn't afford to stall because Percy was perfectly capable of killing him at any moment; Jason had no time to lose. He leaped off the ground, using the air to fling himself over Percy in a messy somersault, and dropped down behind his friend. Jason hurriedly chucked his imperial gold sword to the side and launched himself on to Percy's back.

"Get off of me!" Percy screamed, reaching back with Riptide still in hand. The celestial bronze blade scratched Jason's back through his black long-sleeved shirt, but the son of Zeus didn't notice. Adrenaline pumped through his veins. He could hear his heartbeat hammering against his chest. Jason reached out with one hand to grab Percy's wrist, the other arm wrapped securely around Percy's neck. Percy tried to yell again, but his voice was cut off as Jason's chokehold tightened. With a grunt, Jason's hand shot forward, all of his body weight moving with it, and grabbed Percy's sword arm, digging his nails into the tanned skin.

Percy dropped Riptide and fell forward with Jason's momentum. The two boys tumbled to the ground, and Jason scooted over to his sword and rearmed himself. He prepared to attack again, but before he could move, an enormous bronze axe slammed down in between the two boys. Hectamedes, whose hands were wrapped firmly around the axe's leather grip, let out a loud guffaw. The axe was three times Jason's height, and he could see his ragged and sweaty reflection in the giant blade inches in front of him.

Nico ran up next to Jason, panting and dragging his Stygian iron sword alongside him. "You okay?"

"Yes, but Percy's still in his trance. I don't know how I'm supposed to get him to snap out of it."

"Didn't the giants mention that Percy reacts to sight? We could-"

Nico stopped mid-sentence as he heard a battle cry from over to his right. He spotted Percy vaulting up on to Hectamedes' large, green hands, and from there he leaped out towards Nico, sword poised to stab the demigod through the head. The light of the torches surrounded him in a red glow, and his dark sillouhette was punctuated with those two smoldering orange eyes.

" _Di immortales!_ " Jason yelped, and he tried to pull Nico away, but his hands grabbed at air. He turned just in time to see Nico collapse into the axe's shadow, disappearing into the darkness. Riptide stabbed the table where Nico had been standing moments before. Seeing that his sword hadn't tasted blood, Percy snarled and yanked Riptide out of the ruined wood.

"So close," he growled. Turning to face Jason, Percy smiled his trademark crooked grin and twirled Riptide in his hand. "Guess it's you and me again, Sparky."

Jason grumbled but lifted his sword yet again. "Let's go, Seaweed Brain."

As the two half-bloods engaged in combat once more, Piper and Hazel continued to survive the stabbing fiasco that the giants were playing, speedily bounding across the table as knives plunged around them. The wooden table was wrecked at this point, splinters jabbing out every couple of feet. Out of the corner of her eye, Piper spotted the blue giant's dagger plunging down once again and slid to hide behind an unusually large splinter of wood. Piper knew that they couldn't keep this up forever, and she stole a glance at Hazel, only to see the poor girl losing steam, each of Forterae's strikes cutting closer and closer.

It was then that Forterae poised her knife straight over Hazel's head, and Piper was about call out when the giant yowled and dropped the weapon, fortunately letting it fall out of harm's way. The big purple giant seemed to be staring at something under the table. Hectamedes was the next to yelp, grabbing his foot and rubbing it. What's going on? Piper thought in confusion, and she rushed to the side of the table to see what the problem was. Underneath the desk, Nico was sprinting from massive foot to massive foot and stabbing the giants' toes. _He must have shadow-traveled down there,_ concluded Piper. With a soft chuckle, she mused, _It sure is a good thing giants still wear Greek open-toed sandals. Not a very good fashion choice for war_. The son of Hades noticed her watching and gave Piper a thumbs-up. He had things covered down there.

Piper pulled herself back up onto the table, determined to think of a plan- the longer they fought, the more likely someone would get hurt. She was tired already, and poor Jason was still fighting Percy, sword on sword. Piper had watched Percy practice sword fighting at camp; not only was he the leader of most of the sword fighting exercises, but he had incredibly long stamina when it came to sword fighting. She'd seen him defeat fifteen demigods consecutively once in trai- Piper gasped. She'd thought of a plan.

Piper cleared her throat and directed all of her attention to her voice and the sound and power behind it.

"Gee, Hazel, it sure is a good thing these giants are busy fighting us and not the others."

Hazel watched Piper as she ran away yet again from Aralus's slamming hands, confused as to what Piper meant.

"If they knew about the fifty other demigods we brought, they'd realize that we aren't the main threat." Piper cast an innocent glance up at Aralus, who slowly lifted his fists and paused his smashing spree.

"Fifty…other demigods?"

"Oh, you don't know?" Piper charmspoke, batting her eyelashes for effect. "There are at least fifty of us storming the castle this very minute."

The giants all exchanged nervous glances.

"I saw some them on our way in through the vents," Piper lied, strutting down the edge of the table. "They were totally winning. We brought cannons, archers, a Roman cavalry- mm, I can even smell the fires we set!"

Piper' gaze shifted to Hazel and she lifted her eyebrows. _Fire,_ she mouthed, and Hazel nodded in response. Calling on the Mist, Hazel shut her eyes and focused on the magical talent given to her by Hecate. The temperature in the room gradually rose, and as Piper expected, the smell of smoke wafting through the air from the torches grew stronger. _Hazel has been practicing,_ Piper smirked. The daughter of Pluto had gotten extremely adept at manipulating the Mist.

"She's right!" the orange giant exclaimed, hopping to his feet. "I can smell it!"

"Of course I'm right; you can trust me," Piper affirmed. "You should all go out and fight them instead."

Aralus and Hectamedes also stood, grabbing their weapons in excitement. "Let's go fight the demigods!" All six giants yelled and stormed out of the room, completely engulfed in Piper's lie. The last giant that pushed through the double doors slammed them shut, leaving the room almost silent- except for the sound of Jason and Percy's ongoing duel. Jason was now flying above Percy and occasionally jutting down with a stab of imperial gold. Percy hadn't taken his eyes off of Jason and was entirely focused on their fight.

One monster, however, had not left the room. Callisthenes sat at the head of the table, hands covering his ears.

"Aphrodite's eyes," Piper moaned, dragging her hands down her face. _Why did_ he _have to stay?_ Piper had had enough experience with Cyclops during her first quest; needless to say, she wasn't particularly excited to encounter one again. She approached the stubborn Cyclops and stood in front of his ugly face. "Hey, One Eye!"

Callisthenes snarled at the demigod and hesitantly removed his hands from his big ears. "I know charmspeak when I hear it, girl- I've worked with monsters of all sorts, and a fair share have a knack for vocal magic."

"Yeah, well, looks like I'll have to take a different approach with you." Piper stepped back and gestured to the area in front of her. "Fight me, one-on-one."

The Cyclops laughed. "You? Against me? That's a death sentence." Piper didn't budge, her gaze fixed on the monster before her. Her expression said, _Come at me, bro._

Callisthenes's eyes narrowed, but he could tell that Piper wasn't going to back down. Besides, he couldn't resist a challenge. The Cyclops heaved one armor-clad leg, then the other up onto the table and stood to face Piper. "Your mistake, girl." Callisthenes unsheathed a long golden sword and grinned smugly.

Piper didn't waste time. She dove for the Cyclops's legs and swiped at his knees, managing to cut his left one before he kicked her away. She slid across the wood- no doubt earning some gnarly splinters along the way- and scrambled back to her feet. She knew that her small dagger against a Cyclops and his sword wasn't exactly the smartest way to battle, but she was done. This beast was part of the reason that her friend was beating up her boyfriend- and vice versa. They needed Percy back- _their_ Percy back.

Piper lunged, and the two began their battle. As Piper parried each thrust, she noticed Hazel creeping behind Callisthenes. Hazel held a finger to her lips and pointed to Callisthenes. She was going to attack from behind. Piper gave her a curt nod, careful not to give Hazel away to Callisthenes, who was bearing down harder with each stroke.

"So," Piper panted, blocking another stab from the Cyclops. "How did a weakling like yourself pin the position of Commander?"

" _I_ am no weakling," Callisthenes growled, and as fast as lightning shot forward and smacked Piper's dagger out of her hand, skidding it across the desk. Piper balled her fists, still refusing to back down; Callisthenes only laughed. "I earned my title because I slaughtered the most demigods during Gaea's War last summer. Now I'll add one more to the mix." He pulled his sword arm far back, but before he could lunge with a stab that would have immediatly killed Piper, Hazel jumped up onto the monster's back and hung on for dear life.

"What is the meaning of this?" the Cyclops roared, spinning and twisting and bucking, trying to shake Hazel off. "Let go, you insolent child!"

"I hope you enjoyed your 'taste of war,'" Hazel taunted him, raising her spatha with one hand and clinging to Callisthenes's neck with the other. "'Cause you aren't going to see the final one."

The golden blade speared Callisthenes through the heart. The monster screamed, clawing at the blade sticking through his chest and spitting blood and curses in Greek. Then, he exploded in a shower of golden dust, dropping Hazel onto the table.

Piper offered Hazel a hand, a large smile spreading across her face. Both girls stood, taking a second to catch their breath and recuperate.

"Hazel Levesque," Piper sighed. "You continue to impress me every day." They high-fived, but their celebration was cut short by a cry far behind them.

Hazel and Piper's heads whipped around to spot Percy clutching his arm. Jason seemed frozen, staring with wide blue eyes at the son of Poseidon.

"Oh gods, I'm sorry," Jason apologized, holding his hands out in a plea of peace. His comment went ignored by Percy, who glared at Jason with unnerving hatred. He made no reply, but instead hefted up his sword and charged with a ferocity matching that of Ares. Piper and Hazel sprinted as fast as they could over to the two boys, tennis shoes echoing on the wood with every step.

"Jason!" Hazel called as the son of Zeus shot up into the air, where he was safer. "Aralus said that the Hyde is triggered whenever he _sees_ a demigod!"

"Nico said the same thing, but it's a little late to stop him from seeing us now, isn't it?" Jason replied, rising higher each time Percy jumped and tried to catch him.

Piper gasped as she caught on to Hazel's plan. "We need to blindfold him!"

"With what?" Jason yelped as Riptide sliced his ankle; he shot haphazardly over to the girls and landed beside his girlfriend.

"Where's Leo's tool belt when you need it?" mumbled Piper, looking around for anything that could be used as a blindfold. However, she didn't have much time before Percy was facing the idle the group, sword in hand.

"Now," Percy began, spinning Riptide and still bearing that crooked smile. "Which one of you would like to die first?"

"Percy," Piper said, approaching him slowly. "We are not your enemies."

"You're right," Percy replied, startling Piper. "You're not _my_ enemies. You're _everyone's_ enemies, and I'll be doing them a favor when I _slit your throats!_ " Percy ran at the group of demigods, heading straight for Piper. She reached for her dagger- and her heart skipped a beat when she realized that she had left it over where Callisthenes was killed.

Piper ducked as Percy swung his sword and rolled to his right. She kicked out a leg and tried to trip Percy, but he saw it coming and hopped over it.

"This isn't you!" Hazel exclaimed as she ran towards Percy, arms outstretched. He cast her side-glance and elbowed her out of the way with enough force to knock her down, landing with a _thump_. Groaning, she tapped around her eye and cheek gingerly. In an hour or so she'd have a nasty black eye.

"For Hades's sake," Hazel sighed, wiping her shaky hands on her jacket.

She nearly screamed when something massive came flying out of the shadows. In front of her stood Nico, hugging a giant roll of maps and smiling proudly, like a little boy who just beat you at Mythomagic.

"Did someone say Hades?" he smiled. Nico turned to help Hazel up, and the end of the giant roll of paper that stuck out behind him smacked Percy in the back and swept him away from Piper.

"Nico, what're you doing?" Hazel asked, taking his free hand to help her to her feet.

"I knew we needed a blindfold, so I figured part of the map-" He took a corner in his thin, bony hands and ripped a slice down the side, about six inches wide and four feet long. "-would do the trick."

Jason snatched the paper out of Nico's hand. "Let's do this." Jason, Hazel, and Nico turned to face their opponent. Percy Jackson stood, sword poised for skewering and eyes darting between his enemies angrily. His eyes locked on Nico.

"Watch where your going, creep," Percy sneered, and before anyone could lift their weapons, Percy rammed into the son of Hades, slamming him onto the table with his shoulder. The maps went flying from his hands as he collided roughly with the table. A foot to his left, a giant splinter stuck out of the ground like a stalagmite, and Nico gulped. He could've been impaled.

Percy dropped down and pushed his knee against Nico's chest. "Goodbye, Nico Di Angelo. Tell your dad I said 'Hi.'" Percy laughed, a sound cold and dark, and raised Riptide above his head, where it shone ominously in the firelight, and-

"Gah!" Percy yelped as the map shred was flung over his lava-like eyes and yanked backwards. Jason pulled Percy off of Nico, making sure to keep the improvised blindfold securely over Percy's face. "Stop!" Percy fought, arms and legs flailing. Riptide went flying.

"Now!" ordered Piper, and she, Hazel, and Nico flew onto Percy and dog-piled him. Their combined weight held him fast, with Jason behind to hold the blindfold. Faces were slapped; shins were kicked; arms were punched. "Keep him down!" wheezed Jason- Percy had just elbowed him in the ribs.

"Let me go!" Percy cried, fighting with all his might for freedom.

"This better work," grumbled Piper, her nose bleeding after Nico's head accidentely struck her face while he fought off Percy.

Jason's hands were sweating with effort. "Eventually, his body will have to realize he can't technically see us. That is what the giants said: he only fights when he sees us."

"That's going to be problematic," Nico responded, ducking under Percy's arm and pinning his right leg to the ground. "We've still got to get him out of here."

"He'll be wearing that map for a while, then," commented Hazel, who bounced up and down as Percy's torso jerked about, her arms wrapped tightly around his chest. A full minute passed before Percy showed any signs of slowing. He stopped kicking first; then his torso went limp. His punches didn't pack as much force as before. Then, as if someone had tapped his Achilles's spot, Percy gasped for air. Chest heaving, he grasped for support, finding Nico's sweatshirt and Hazel's arm to cling to.

No one spoke; they were all in shock. The swing in his emotions was incredible. One moment, Percy was fighting as if his life depended on it. Now, he panted as if he'd almost drowned in muskeg again. It took a good thirty seconds worth of shaky breaths before Percy managed to speak.

"Is…Is everyone okay?" he coughed.

"Oh, thank the gods!" Hazel sighed in relief, and she pulled Percy up and into a hug. "You're back."

"Yeah," Percy smiled, but it wasn't heartfelt. What he had just done…oh gods.

"Here," Jason said, tying the map firmly around Percy's head before letting go. "No more Hyde attacks."

Percy let out a dry laugh. "Hopefully." Everyone decided to shuffle back a few inches in order to give him some space. The room was eerily quiet.

"Are you, um…How do you feel?" Nico inquired, not sure of what to ask the guy who had just attempted to murder everyone present. Percy lifted his head as if to look at all the demigods, then realized it was pointless. He sighed heavily. "Guys… I'm sorry. I am so, so sorry. The Hyde is terrifying. I can see everything I'm doing, but I have no control over myself whatsoever. It's like living a nightmare, hurting all of you." He paused.

"If I hadn't lost control in Dr. Derideo's lab-"

Hazel held up a hand to stop him, but after realizing he couldn't see it, she replied, "Percy, we don't blame you. What happened, well, happened. There's nothing we can do besides move on. We still love you, you have to remember that."

She leaned forward and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "You're still our best friend, Percy. No super powers are ever going to change that."

Percy's eyes watered, but no one could tell.

"So…" Piper began, wiping her bloody nose on her sleeve. "What do we do now?"

"I don't know about you guys," Percy replied, putting a hand on his stomach, "but I could really go for a cheeseburger."

The demigods all laughed, a welcome sound in the dark room. There they sat, in the middle of a giant mauled table lit only by torches, deep in the caverns of a monster-infested castle on the verge of war, and the sound of their laughter was the only thing that mattered.


	8. Escape

Jason was tired. No, scratch that. Jason was exhausted. He hadn't eaten nor slept since Camp Half-Blood, and it didn't look like he'd be doing either any time soon.

Taking in the appearance of his friends, it looked like they too were running on empty. Piper had walked off to retrieve her cast-aside dagger; Nico was sitting on his giant roll of paper, his eyes lost in thought; Hazel was busy helping Percy to his feet and guiding him towards Jason.

"What now?" she asked to no one in particular, eyes glued to the floor as she directed Percy's path. "We killed Callisthenes, but something tells me we aren't even close to being done."

"Our quest is to dismantle the monster army before it can attack Camp," Nico reminded the group as Piper finally returned. Standing up, Nico continued, "Even without Callisthenes, these monsters are still capable of leading a massive attack. Something tells me that Callisthenes wasn't the head of this entire operation. He may have been commander of the armies, but he wasn't king of the castle."

"Nico's right," Jason agreed. "Six giants wouldn't be taking orders from a Cyclops unless they were told to do so by someone of higher position."

"Speaking of giants," Piper broke in, nervously glancing at the large double doors at the end of the room. "Those guys won't be searching for fifty imaginary demigods for long. By now, they must've realized they were tricked."

"Then we've got no time to lose," Percy declared, adjusting his blindfold. "Finding a private place to plan is our top priority. On my way down here, I didn't see an exit out of the headquarters, but there were thousands of rooms. Some of those have got to lead to a closet or an empty room. Or, you know, they could lead to the lair of a manticore." He shrugged, "I guess it's a fifty-fifty chance."

"Well, one thing's for sure," Piper added. "We can't stay here any longer. This'll be the first place they search for us, and there's no way we're leaving through the front doors."

"How about the vents again?" Nico suggested, kicking the broken metal chute behind him and letting it echo for effect.

Jason nodded. "I can fly everyone up there, and we can leave the way we got in."

Everyone murmured in agreement, and as they lined up to get carried up into the sky, Piper approached him and said quietly, "Are you up to this? Your back and shoulder are still bleeding and I don't want-"

"I'm fine, trust me," Jason smiled, putting a hand on his girlfriend's shoulder. "Besides," he laughed. "I've had much worse." Before Piper could respond, Jason swept her off her feet and into a bridal carry. "See? No problem."

Piper rolled her eyes yet couldn't help but grin. Jason shot up into the air, headed for the ragged opening in the stone ceiling that revealed the vents. Hovering by the opening, Jason hefted Piper up and helped her crawl into the vent.

Jason descended at a leisurely pace but nearly dropped out of the sky when he heard a yell from somewhere outside the double doors at the end of the room.

"They're coming back," Jason gasped, then sped down to the table and grabbed Nico and Hazel around the waist with one arm each.

"We've got to get out of here _now,_ " Jason told them, then rushed upwards and let them join Piper in the vents. Percy was the last to be flown up. Jason noticed that Percy, whom he carried like Nico and Hazel, held on to Jason's shirt tightly and his eyebrows were a bit furrowed. It was then that he realized Percy was putting all of his trust in Jason- Percy couldn't see anything. He'd have to allow the other demigods to lead him entirely during their escapade. That took a lot of trust.

The moment that Percy was allowed to crawl into the vent, the doors below began to pound.

" _They're here,_ " Percy hissed, reaching out blindly behind him for Jason's hand. Jason took it, and Percy yanked him inside the vents just as the doors blast open.

Aralus stormed into the abandoned meeting room with a roar of frustration.

"Where are those brats?" he growled, clenching his fists angrily. He scanned the room, searching for signs of life. "Where is Callisthenes?"

"Go, go, go," mouthed Jason, and everybody scuffled forward, trying to keep their knees from slamming on the thin metal with each shuffle. Aralus' voice grew quieter the farther they crawled, soon coming across a sharp right turn, then a left. Jason and Percy quickly developed a system that involved Jason tugging on Percy's feet to indicate a direction change- right foot for right turn, left foot for left turn.

Even with the demigods moving as swiftly and softly as possible, they couldn't help but make occasional echoes and bumps. Each time someone's knee landed too hard on the vent floor and rang throughout the ventilation system, Jason prayed to Zeus that no one in the halls below could hear. He felt the vent's dust coating his fingers with every movement, and bits of it were kicked up as everyone shuffled along. He fought down a sneeze.

Percy, who was beginning to feel a little disoriented, whispered, "Do you guys know where we're going?"

From the front of the group, Piper whispered back, "We got in here from the kitchen. They have monsters who bring in truck-loads of raw meat-" She shuddered. "-and so we hid in one of the empty boxes. When they picked it up, they thought the weight was from a bunch of steaks, not four demigods."

"Once we got inside," Hazel continued for Piper, "We hopped out of the boxes and went straight into the vents. We wandered around a bit before coming to the area above the meeting room, and I guess our combined weight brought the vent down."

They made another right.

"And you're telling me you remember the way out?"

"Well…not exactly."

"Oh, great, so we're-"

"Guys," hissed Nico, "be quieter."

They turned left, then right, then left.

"Percy mentioned finding an empty room to hide in," Hazel reminded the group. "At the next grate, we should find a way down into the castle. Leaving will only bring us back to where we were before. We need to-" She paused, rubbing her nose vigorously. "We need to take down the army."

"We should Iris Message Chiron first," Nico suggested quietly. "Warn him about the army's plan and ask how he'd like us to take down the monsters from the inside."

"Let's-" She broke off again to rub her nose and sniff. Nico, who was behind her, caught on to what was happening and stopped in his tracks.

"Hazel, don't."

"Ah-"

"Hazel!"

" _ACHOO!_ "

Everybody froze, listening to the high-pitched sound echo as loud as thunder. A good five seconds of silence passed.

"Sorry," Hazel mumbled, blushing bright red.

All of a sudden, a gleaming wall of silver sliced up from the floor directly in front of Hazel before sliding back down again.

" _Holy-_ " she breathed in shock.

It shot up again in front of Jason, inches from his nose. He saw his frightened, wide-eyed reflection in the blade. Di immortales, Jason thought. Dejá vü; then he immediately made the connection. Hectamedes.

"What the Hades is going on?" Percy demanded, completely clueless, but no one had time to answer before the walls of the vent crumpled inwards as if a giant hand- or rather, a giant's hand- had grabbed the metal shaft. Percy and Nico yelped, since the walls were tightest around them, though Percy was notably louder.

" _What the hell is happening?_ " Percy cried in alarm; then the vent was yanked down, ripping out of the ceiling and bringing down all the surrounding metal and stone with it. The demigods fell, tumbling through the shredded metal and broken stone until they slammed on to the carpeted floor below. Hectamedes dropped the metal, Percy, and Nico and grabbed his axe with both hands. He turned towards Piper with madness shining in his eye, and the blue giant from earlier stood to his right, looking just as angry.

"You made us look like fools!" Hectamedes bellowed, raising his axe. "Now I'll make you look like dust!" He brought down the axe with enough force to crack the marble, but Piper rolled out of the way.

"Get up and run!" she shouted, pulling Hazel to her feet and running off down the hall. Jason followed suit, and Nico grabbed Percy's hand and dragged him along.

"We are _not_ using the vents again!" yelled Nico, scrambling around the corner with Percy in tow.

"The giants must've split up," panted Piper as she continued to sprint down another hall, leading her friends nowhere in particular- just away from Hectamedes and the other giant.

The sound of the Hectamedes' angry howl reverberated through the floor, sparking another burst of energy from the demigods.

"Percy," Nico started, taking the chance to look behind him as he ran. Percy reached up and adjusted his blindfold; his hair was wild from the vent adventure and previous battle, and his new bronze chest plate was already dented. "You've seen these halls before- do you know anything helpful?"

"Not really," he shrugged, looking awkward as he ran. The demigods spun around another corner, and Nico made sure to pull Percy so that he didn't run directly into a wall. "Every hall looked the same. The room they gave me was up a few floors in a tower, and the armory is near the giants' meeting room. Other than that- no, nothing distinguishable."

"Let's just start trying doors, then," Piper announced. She skidded to a stop and yanked on the door handle to her right. It didn't budge. She jumped to the next door- still nothing. She sighed in exasperation, and in the distance Hectamedes' footsteps could be heard booming closer.

"C'mon!" Piper yelled, motioning for everyone to keep running. They followed her lead, and once they reached the next hall, Piper tried the first door on her left. This one opened.

"Inside, now!" she ordered, and all the demigods filed in as fast as possible. Piper slammed the door shut and leaned against it, locking it for extra protection.

Nobody moved; they just stood and panted, trying to catch their breaths.

"Are we safe?" Percy asked, wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans.

A thud behind them answered Percy's question. Each demigod's head slowly turned to face the creature behind them. The room had a short, narrow hall in which the demigods stood, that opened up into a large square room. This one had a large floor-to-ceiling window and a king-sized bed, and standing next to that bed was a large dragon-like creature with a woman's body where the head should've been. Snakes wreathed around the creature's black, scaly legs, and more slithered on the woman's head. Her expression was almost as fearsome as the monsterous heads sprouting around her waist.

"Uh, hello," Nico choked out, slowly taking a step backwards and cautiously reaching for his sword. "We were, uh, just leaving."

The beast snarled at Nico and unfurled two ominous bat wings that spanned the length of the room.

"Who is it?" Percy whispered to Jason, who stood to his right.

"I don't know," Jason whispered back. "She's half-dragon and has snakes everywhere and-"

" _Kampê,_ " Percy gulped. Jason watched Percy's complexion pale. Percy had obviously faced this monster before, and it hadn't been a good encounter.

"How'd you beat her?" Jason questioned him as Kampê took a heavy step forward.

"I-I didn't. I hit her in the face with a shield, but I never killed her."

Kampê let out an ear-piercing shriek and dove at the narrow hallway where the demigods currently stood, frightened to the core.

"Out! Out! Out!" Piper screamed, and the hallway became a fit of flailing limbs and scrambling legs, everyone climbing over each other to escape. Kampê's snakes lashed out and nearly bit Hazel's arm, and the lion head on her waist snagged the edge of Percy's chest plate, ripping it off and chucking it behind her.

The demigods piled into the main hall, and in seconds they were all up and running for their lives. Kampê burst out of her room and slammed into the opposite wall, scraping against it as she regained her footing. She was too big to truly fly down the hall, so she settled for haphazardly hops and sprints.

The half bloods soon came upon a steep staircase, leading down Zeus-knows-where. Each demigod bumped into the other as they struggled to stop in time, but Percy, who didn't realize everyone was stopping, sprinted head-on into the crowd, knocking everyone over- just in time.

Kampê came barreling around the bend and shot straight towards the stairwell, too fast to slow. She flew straight over the demigods crumpled on the floor and crashed into the sloping ceiling, roaring in pain and outrage, and continued to fall head over dragon heels down the stairs.

The demigods listened as the monster's yells echoed fainter and fainter as she descended. A final thud indicated that she reached the bottom. All was silent.

"Is she dead?" breathed Hazel, fanning herself as she tended to do when flustered.

"Let's not stick around to find out," Percy replied, roughly standing up and trying his best to help the others. They all eventually got to their feet and had only a few seconds to recuperate before another roar rang through the castle.

" _Find the demigods!_ " Hectamedes boomed, and from the sound of it, he wasn't too far behind. " _We need Perseus alive!_ "

"Man, I love attention," Percy grimaced, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Hazel tried the doors surrounding the demigods, but all were locked tight. They stood at the end of a corridor; one path led down the stairs towards a disgruntled flying dragon hybrid, and the other backtracked towards two angry giants.

"We're trapped," murmured Jason, searching around for any way out. Without his glasses, which he'd hooked on the front collar of his shirt, everything was blurry- but even he could see they were out of escape options. No halls, no windows, no open doors. They had to choose. "We can't successfully fight Hectamedes or the blue giant without a god's help, so I guess Kampê is our better option."

"Then let's get this over with," Nico agreed, yielding his Stygian Iron sword confidently. He took a step forward, but before anyone could follow, the two giants rounded the corner and stood looming over the small group of half bloods, their shadows completely covering the five of them.

"Finally," Hectamedes sighed, brandishing his axe. The blue giant cracked his knuckles for extra effect.

Percy turned blindly towards the sound of the giant's voice. "Hello, Hectamedes. How'd that fight with those other demigods go?"

The giant glared at Percy and, through clenched teeth, answered, "There were no _others._ "

"Really? Oh, what a shame."

"Speaking of fights," Hectamedes added, "how was yours? I see your friends got quite the beating." Percy turned to glance around but, of course, couldn't see the damage. It was true that the demigods had taken some rough hits. Piper was cut up from splinters and had blood smeared on her face from her bloody nose; Jason's shoulders and back stung from Riptide's slices, and he had enough bruises to resemble a Dalmatian; Nico's ankle was still sprained, though he was trying his best to ignore it; Hazel had a black-eye, and her jacket hung open in the back from one large cut. However, Percy didn't need to see their injuries to know that he'd done them harm. He made no reply.

The giant knelt down and reached towards Percy's blindfold. "You don't need that scrap of paper any-"

Hazel grabbed the back of Percy's hoodie and tugged him backwards and out of Hectamedes' reach.

"I don't think so," she responded, eyes narrowing at the giants. "He's on our side."

"No, he's not," growled Hectamedes. He brought his ugly mug so close to Hazel that she snorted and spit in his big eyes. He reared back and yelled in outrage.

"That's it! This ends now!" Hectamedes pointed at the demigods, and his blue accomplice whipped out a dagger and grinned menacingly.

"What do we do?" Hazel whispered sharply into Nico's ear. The son of Hades' expression hardened. He had a plan- most likely one Hazel wouldn't like. As soon as the blue giant moved forward, Nico jumped in front of his friends and grabbed Hazel's and Percy's arms.

"Grab on!" he ordered, and Jason and Piper joined the huddle. With seconds to spare, Nico's eyes squeezed shut and the world went dark.

When light returned to their world, the demigods found themselves in a new hall, complete with the red carpet running down the center and marble tiling. To their right, a metal portcullis-like gate blocked a staircase, but other than that it was no different than the countless other halls they'd run through.

Jason turned to thank Nico, but his friend's eyes were drooping shut, and soon he collapsed onto Percy, who grabbed him around the arms.

"Shadow traveled and now passed out?" Percy summarized, making sure he understood what was going on.

"Yep."

Piper took Nico from Percy, adjusting to carry him in a piggyback position. She figured that he should be carried by someone who could actually see where he was going, you know?

Percy felt for nearest wall, trying to get his whereabouts, and when his hand connected with metal bars, he gasped. "I know where we are. This leads to my bedroom- well, the room they locked me in."

Piper whistled. "Top security for their secret weapon, huh?"

"Only the best for you, Perseus."

The demigods spun to look behind them, and there, at the far end of the hall, stood Forterae. She marched towards her prey, sword clutched firmly in her left hand.

"We just can't catch a break, can we?" complained Percy. Then, in Forterae's general direction, Percy smirked. "Long time no see, Forterae. Well, still 'no see' for me, but you get the idea."

"Shut up, half blood," she growled. "The only reason you're not dead is because my commander wants you alive. _I_ still _hate_ you."

"The feeling's mutual," Percy retorted. Forterae's pace quickened, and her gaze didn't deter from Percy. The other demigods armed themselves in defense, but they knew the fight would be futile. They couldn't kill a giant without the help of a god. Piper slid Nico off of her back and gave the unconscious demigod to Hazel before facing Forterae. She stepped in between Percy and the giant with a look in her eyes fierce enough to strike terror into the heart of Deimos himself.

"We aren't afr-" she began, but before she could finish her threat, Forterae's muscular indigo arm swung out and slammed Piper into the portcullis. The impact echoed down the hall, and Piper yelped in pain. Jason saw red and turned to glare at the giant. Nobody hurts his friends like that- especially Piper.

It was time to attack.

Jason focused on the chilly air around them and imagined it swirling around him. It took mere seconds before he felt the breeze ruffle his clothes, at first soft but rapidly battering harder and harder. Forterae looked surprised at the sudden gusts, pausing in confusion. Percy's eyebrows lifted, and he rushed over to the metal bars for support. He could tell from the sudden shift in the air pressure that Jason was about to use his new attack he'd developed recently- Percy'd experienced it once before, and he know knew that if he didn't grab hold of something, he'd regret it. Hazel and Piper followed his lead.

Jason let the wind's pace grow, billowing around him in an invisible cyclone. He felt the power rushing around him, inside him even. Percy had once described to Jason the feeling he gets when using his water powers- that tug in his gut. Jason never felt that. Instead, he had a headache. The stronger the storm, the harder the headache- sometimes his ears rang after a powerful attack. Jason could already tell that this would be one of those attacks. He thrust his right hand forward, and the wind spiraled down his arm and shot in an explosion of air at Forterae, propelling her far, far down the hall. The giant screamed, roughly rolling down the corridor. At one point, her head collided with the ground with a loud _smack_ , and when the wind died down, she didn't move. _Unconscious,_ reasoned Jason.

He slowly lowered his arm and tried to mentally block out the ringing in his ears. He glanced at the others; their hair was blown violently to one side, and they all still clutched the portcullis as if their lives depended on it.

"It's, uh, it's over now. You guys can let go." They did, albeit hesitantly.

Jason wondered if this was how Percy felt every time he used his powers for something major. I mean, sure, Jason had seen his fair share of reactions at doing things like summoning Tempest or electrocuting entire armadas, but it felt different when his closest friends gave him that look of awe and… fear.

Nico chose this moment to finally crack open his eyes. "Are we safe?" he yawned.

"Almost," Hazel replied, helping him to his feet. The demigods regrouped- all except for Percy, who walked along the wall with his hand running lightly across it. He felt the edge of the first door and pulled at the handle.

"Locked," he told the others, then moved on. His friends turned and followed closely behind. The next two were also locked, but the third opened after a few shakes of the doorknob.

Percy flung the door open, and the others immediately gasped and covered their eyes.

"What?" Percy asked, unaware of what was going on.

"Perseusss Jacksson," hissed none other than Medusa, standing in the doorway inches from Percy. "I was about to come outsside and sssee what all the fusss was about, when my favorite demigod opened the door for me."

Percy didn't waste time. The others heard a shink, rip, thud, followed by silence. Jason dared to peek through his fingers, and he was astonished at what he saw. Medusa's head rolled, decapitated, next to Percy's feet. The gorgon's body stood headless in the doorway for a second more before dissolving into golden dust. Percy still held Riptide tight in his right hand.

"Guys, I found our free room," he remarked casually, sliding Riptide back into its sheath. Then, under his breath, he added, "That's two for two."

Everyone cautiously looked back at Percy and Medusa's head and found themselves speechless. Percy had just beheaded Medusa in five seconds flat- while blindfolded. The whole encounter reminded Jason of a story Annabeth had told him a few months ago; in Tartarus, Percy had killed Arachne when the spider tried to murder Annabeth. However, it happened so fast that Annabeth had had no time to react, and she had no idea how Percy did it. Jason wondered if killing monsters even fazed Percy anymore.

Percy turned as if to look at his friends, confused by their silence. "It's all clear." The others followed him inside, and Jason locked the door behind them.

The bed was still made, and nothing looked touched. In fact, the ambiance reminded Jason of a hotel room. Now that there was no monster to distract him, Jason could really take it all in. The walls were still stone, much like the rest of the castle, but everything else looked fairly modern. The large bed was pushed against the right wall, and next to it was nightstand and lamp. The mortal-looking arrangements put everyone at ease; they felt like they'd finally found a place to relax. In the corner, there was a tiny refrigerator, surprisingly, which Nico made a beeline for and was already checking out.

"There's food in here!" he exclaimed, pulling out piles of candy, beef jerky, and what looked like some packaged raw meat from the kitchen. Nico gingerly pushed that aside but kept the other goodies.

"Don't we have to pay for those?" Piper asked, collapsing onto the bed with arms wide.

"Like I care," Nico scoffed, ripping open a packet of M&Ms. "Shadow-traveling makes me hungry as well as tired."

Hazel headed straight for the tiny bathroom, and Jason opened the closet to his left. Inside were clothes of all different sizes- small, medium, large, extra-large, and monster-large. The monster army must've had recruits of all kinds, varying from human-sized to, well, giant. _These guys sure want to keep their guests happy,_ Jason mused, taking in the luxuries they were lucky enough to have at their fingertips.

The demigods spent the next couple of hours simply relaxing. They ate, showered, and cleaned themselves up. Piper found everyone's sizes in the closet and handed out some fresh, un-cut clothes for everyone to wear.

Percy came out of the bathroom, having showered last, and Jason noticed that instead of the improvised map blindfold, Percy had cut up us black hoodie and tied a strip of that around his eyes. He set his armor in the corner and joined the others on the bed.

"Eyes are still orange," he sighed, pointing at his new blindfold. "Callisthenes said that the Hyde lasts for 12 hours, so it should wear off pretty soon." He was met with silence- something he was tired of hearing- so to lighten the mood, he added, "Until then, I'm ready for any games of Pin the Tail on the Satyr." This got him a few laughs.

Piper, who wore a large camoflauge t-shirt and black sweatpants, stretched out on the end of the bed. "We should make a plan."

"She's right," Jason said. "Should we call up Chiron?"

The demigods only source of water was the bathroom sink and shower, so Jason, Piper, and Percy went into the bathroom to make the call. They let Nico and Hazel sleep.

Percy stood in the shower and turned the silver knob, letting the water fall around him. Now that the water was out of the newly-protected plumbing, he had it back in his control. He waved his hand lightly, and the steady stream of water faded into a cloud of mist.

"Anybody got a drachma?" he asked. "Or an organic gluten-free dessert? I'm pretty sure Iris accepts those too."

Piper pulled a drachma out of her pocket- she always kept a few spares- and flipped it through the mist. "Oh Iris, Goddess of the Rainbow, accept my offering. Show me Chiron at Camp Half-Blood."

Their favorite centaur quickly appeared in the mist. Chiron stood on the porch of the Big House, and he looked like he hadn't slept in days.

"Chiron," Jason began, and the centaur turned to face the message. Immediately, his face lit up in relief.

"Jason! Piper! Thank the gods you're safe. Where are the others?"

"I'm here," Percy stated, waving his hand in front of the message. "I'm behind the mist, and Hazel and Nico are asleep."

"We want to discuss battle plans," Jason explained, and the three demigods relayed everything that had happened: the Hyde, Callisthenes, the monsters' plan.

"We know that they need to be dismantled now," Jason continued, "but we don't know who their leader is, and we can't kill the giants without a god's help."

"Percy," Chiron said, deep in thought. "You said they believe you're on their side, correct?"

"Yep," he confirmed. "However, the giants know I'm with everyone else trying to escape, so no doubt their trust in me is gone."

"If you can convince them that you're still on their side, you can find out more information about their leader and discover faults in their plan."

"The Opening!" Piper gasped, much to everyone else's confusion. "You were supposed to be presented at the Opening. That's what Dr. Derideo said."

Percy caught on. "If I can convince them that I'm on their side, we can ambush them during the Opening. I'll go on stage and do whatever they have planned, and from there I'll ruin everything."

"If we disguise the rest of us as monsters with some help from the Mist," Jason added, "we can get inside and help from the audience."

"Perfect," Chiron said. "Find a way to keep in touch with each other. Percy, the more you find out about this Opening ceremony, the more you can develop your plan. We need more information before the real attack can begin. I know this is a lot to ask of you," Chiron said, his gaze sympathetic, "but I do believe you will succeed."

"What should we do about the giants?" Piper asked.

"Pray for help- literally," Chiron answered. "I'll do the same." Someone called his name from behind, and the centaur nodded to the demigods. "Call me again soon." With that, he waved his hand through the Mist, breaking their connection.

The three demigods returned to the main bedroom and explained the plan to Hazel and Nico, who had just woken up. They spent the rest of the day planning and plotting on how to take down the impossible army.

It wasn't long before they all settled in to sleep for the night. Fortunately, the room had a clock hanging on the wall so that the demigods knew the time even without phones or a window. Jason, Piper, and Nico fell asleep as soon as their heads hit the pillows, and Hazel was grabbing one last bite to eat before settling in. Percy silently crossed the room, dragging his hand along the wall to lead him, and went into the bathroom. He locked the door, flicked on he lights, and turned towards the mirror. Carefully, Percy unraveled his blindfold and set it on the sink's edge. Then, taking a deep breath and sending a silent prayer to Poseidon, he opened his eyes.

Sea green.

His eyes were sea green again.

Percy's fresh eyes watered at the sight, and a large smile broke out across his face. He was no longer a danger, a threat, a killer. His friends were safe at last. Percy chucked the blindfold in to the small trashcan by the toilet with a feeling of satisfaction and finality. He was Percy Jackson, a certified enemy of monsters.

It was then that Kelli's words to him flashed through his mind. _Think about why we're doing this in the first place, and maybe you'll come around and see things from our point of view._ He shook his head as if to get rid of the words. He couldn't afford to see things from their point of view- not now. They'd decided that in the morning, Percy would turn himself in and act as if he'd been on the monsters' side the whole time. It was all an act. He couldn't feel compassion for monsters right before going off to massacre an army full of them.

Percy left the bathroom and spotted Hazel, who was seated against the wall with a bag of raisins. Percy sat down next to her and tapped her shoulder. She looked up and immediately gasped upon seeing his eyes again. She hugged him so tight he could barely breath, but Percy didn't care. He felt tears of joy slip down his face, but Percy didn't care. He was free.

When Hazel finally pulled away, Percy took in her familiar face. He noticed her black eye and opened his mouth to apologize for hurting her, but she held up a finger.

"Don't you dare apologize, Percy. This isn't your fault."

Percy smiled, but in his heart he didn't agree with her. He should've been able to resist the Hyde, somehow. He should've been stronger. He should've protected his friends instead of being a burden all day long.

"That doesn't mean I'm not sorry," Percy replied. "I hurt you all, and whether or not you think that's my fault, I'm still sorry. It was torture, watching myself do all those things."

"Percy, I admit, sometimes you can get a little intimidating and, quite frankly, scary. But at the end of the day, I know I can trust you. You know why?"

"Why?"

"Because even when your eyes are orange, you have a heart of gold." She kissed him lightly on the forehead and left him to think about what she'd said.


	9. Lies and Loyalties

Percy knew he was having a nightmare when he saw his girlfriend's mother.

The goddess of wisdom and battle strategy herself stood in front of Percy, arms crossed and grey-eyed gaze burning through Percy's skin. It was sunny, and the light reflected blindingly off of Athena's robes. Glancing around, Percy recognized Olympus, but there appeared to be no one else in the floating city. Just Percy and Athena.

Alone.

Thousands of feet in the air.

_Great._

The goddess of wisdom didn't speak; she only stared at Percy with that uncomfortable intensity. Percy had seen that look before on Annabeth when she was faced with a calculus equation and had forgotten the formula.

"So, um… Athena," Percy began, rocking back on his heels. Percy generally felt pretty comfortable around the Olympians- borderline casual- but Athena had always made him nervous. Now that Annabeth was his girlfriend, Percy had to be extremely careful about what he said and did in front of her almighty mother. "You summoned me here- in my dream- so… what gives?"

"You are on the brink of a vicious war. You are in need of an Olympian's aid. The fact that you have not asked for help from the goddess of _battle strategy_ is quite moronic."

"Thanks," Percy replied sarcastically. It was hard to keep a respectful tone when the Olympian in front of you kicks off every conversation with a bitter remark. "If you're so eager to help us, what do you suggest we do?"

Athena rolled her eyes, already annoyed with Percy's sarcasm. "I listened to your conversation with Chiron, and I agree that your best bet would be to convince the Giants that you are back on their side. However, you will need magic to pull it off. Thankfully, you've got Piper's persuasion and Hazel's Mist. They'll disguise your friends as monsters so that they can hide in the crowd, and from there they can attack. You, on the other hand, must journey on your own. Find the Giants, tell them that you are on their side, and follow their orders. That leaves us with just one problem."

She paused, as if Percy should know what this "last problem" was. He didn't.

"And that problem would be…?" Percy prompted, rolling his hands to signify Athena to continue.

"Your eyes."

Percy's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

Athena sighed heavily, pressing her fingers to her temples in exasperation. Under her breath, she muttered, "Honestly I don't understand what Annabeth could possibly see in you." Bringing her focus back to Percy, she explained. "Your eyes are green again. The Giants will never believe that you are on their side if it is visually clear that you are no longer under their control. Have Hazel use her Mist to make your eyes look orange again."

"Great." Percy gave her a thumbs-up. "I'll tell her when I wake up."

"As for the Opening Ceremony, go along with the ritual until I arrive. You will need me to kill the Giants."

"Wait," Percy stopped the goddess. "If you're able to just show up at the monster base, why haven't the gods destroyed the army already?"

"It's not as simple as that," Athena scoffed. "As I'm sure you are well-aware by now, we Olympians can't always get directly involved in-"

Percy laughed drily. "Oh, of course. That's the way it always is with you guys."

"Percy-" Athena's voice grew louder and harsher, but Percy disregarded her implied threat.

"You always make us fight your battles and expect us to be on the scene as soon as possible, but when we need your help, there are 'rules' and 'traditions' you must uphold."

"I am trying to _help_ you, boy-"

"But why now? Why not two days ago, when we were tied up in Dr. Derideo's lab? Why not when Giants were chasing us down the hallways? Why not when I attacked my friends?"

Athena dropped to one knee so that her large, unnaturally immaculate face was inches from Percy's.

Percy didn't flinch.

"You watch your mouth. I'm offering you my help, and I think it's in your best interest to accept it. Unless, of course, you'd rather not have the help of an Olympian and face the impossible task of killing a Giant's army without a god's help."

Percy took a deep breath and held up his hands in mock surrender. There was no point in arguing with Athena. "I'm sorry. We do need your help."

"You will not attack until I arrive. Alone, I guarantee that you will not succeed. And you, Perseus Jackson, have to keep in mind that this is your duty. You are loyal to the Olympians, not to the mons-"

Percy looked incredulous. "I'm not on their side!"

Athena eyed Percy suspiciously. "Remember that, then, in battle. I've seen your thoughts, boy. I know about your inner moral battle, concerning the lives of-"

"Stop; stop right now," Percy interrupted, hand swinging down to his pocket and whipping out Riptide, slicing through the air and pointing it directly at Athena. "Do not doubt my loyalty. I _will_ kill every monster out there to protect my friends. Do _not_ doubt me."

Athena smirked. "Good. I'll see you on the battlefield."

"See you on the battlefield," Percy affirmed, sheathing his sword.

Everything went black.

Percy's eyes fluttered open sleepily. He was cuddled in a pile of fluffy blankets that he didn't remember having last night- probably Hazel's doing. He smiled to himself, pulling the blankets up closer to his chin. He wanted to enjoy every last second of relaxation before he went out to act as a double agent among the Giants' army and proceed to kill every monster he comes across, all the while praying that Athena comes through on their plan- a plan that hung in the balance of a bond of trust between Percy and a monster. Happy fun times.

Percy finally sat up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"How's everyone d-"

"Percy!" Piper yelped, and before Percy could even take his own hands off of his eyes, she clapped hers over his eyes, knocking him back down into the blankets.

"Piper! What the Hades are you doing?" Percy yelled, trying to shove Piper off.

"Where's your blindfold?" Piper asked, but Percy managed to pry her hands off and stare up at her with bright, sea green eyes. She froze, if only for a moment, before easing off of Percy. "You…you're normal again."

"And wide awake," Percy added sarcastically, sitting up as Piper climbed off the bed awkwardly. "The Hyde wore off last night."

"Just taking precaution," Piper replied. "We don't want an extra battle today." Percy laughed it off, trying to ease the tension. Nobody wanted to repeat the fight from the map room, especially when they needed to be in tip-top shape for their ambush at the Opening. A door opened, and Nico stepped out of the bathroom, drying his dark hair in a towel. He smiled when he saw Percy.

"Hey, welcome back, Orange-Eyes."

"Ha, ha," Percy responded drily. Jason was over in the corner talking with Hazel as he cleaned his glasses and she attempted to run a giant brush through her frizzy hair. The casual nature of the demigods felt like the calm before the storm.

"So, uh…" Percy slid out of bed. "I had a dream last night."

That caught everyone's attention. The others gathered around the bed, and Percy described his dream- leaving out Athena's questioning of his loyalties. His friends had no reason to suspect anything, right? Kelli had mentioned that monsters had lives to live too, but that doesn't mean anything. Right? He knew that the monsters were disgusting, vile, rude, dangerous, lifeless…homeless…desperate…

Percy looked up at his friends' faces, all of whom were looking at him oddly. Apparently, he had trailed off in the middle of his discussion. He cleared his throat awkwardly. "Sorry. I was just- you know, lost in thought." He finished retelling his dream, summing up Athena's plan.

"So to recap," Hazel began, "we need to disguise ourselves as monsters in order to blend in while you go and convince the Giants you're back on their side. Then, during the Opening, we stall until Athena arrives and helps us stop the army."

"And in order to pull it off," Piper added, "we'll be transforming ourselves using Mist and charm speak- and turning your eyes orange again."

"Yep," Percy agreed. Then, looking out the window, "What time is it?"

"About 11:00," Jason replied.

"Well," Percy clapped his hands together. "Sounds like it's time to do some trickery."

Hazel and Percy stayed seated on the bed while the others raided the closet for every scrap of cloth, leather, and metal they could find. Piper dug through the drawers in search of anything that could help their costumes, and she managed to find some of Medusa's makeup. The poor woman had snakes for hair; Piper didn't blame her for using some beauty tools to enhance what people _could_ look at safely.

Hazel had Percy sit crisscrossed in front of her, while she mirrored his pose.

"I've never done this before, so I don't know what to expect," she warned Percy, placing her small hands delicately over his eyes.

"What, changing eye colors in order to fake possession isn't on your top ten spells list?" Percy joked, which earned him a light slap on the head from Hazel.

"Close your eyes," she said. Percy did as he was told. Hazel blocked out all sound, focusing all of her attention on Percy. She imagined sunsets, orange juice, pumpkins, orange flowers, carrots- anything orange. She imagined the color running through her veins and traveling all the way down to her palms and-

"Gah!" Percy cried, pulling away and rubbing his eyes roughly. "That stings like manticore venom."

"Sorry," Hazel apologized, holding her hands close to her chest. "I didn't think it would-"

"No, no, it's fine," Percy replied, blinking hard. "Are they orange?"

A smile crept across Hazel's face. "As orange as a Camp Half-Blood t-shirt."

Percy grinned from ear to ear. "Thanks, Hazel. You're the best." He gave her a quick hug and hopped off of the bed.

"How are you going to keep this trick up all day?" Percy asked as he made his way into the bathroom. Hazel followed, and together they stared in the mirror.

"I've been practicing my magic back at Camp Jupiter, and at this point it's just getting the spell started that's difficult. It's like pushing a boulder- at first, it's almost too heavy to budge, but once you get it rolling it's pretty easy."

"So you can keep this up all day, if need be?"

"Sure- as long as I'm awake," she added. Percy leaned in towards the mirror, widening his eyes.

"I never got used to this look," he sighed. "It's just so..."

"Intimidating?"

Nico was leaning against the doorframe to the bathroom. How long he'd been there, Percy didn't know. Nico had a habit of sneaking up on people, both by accident and on purpose.

"You'd better get going," Nico continued. "You're going to need a lot of time talking with those Giants before they believe you're back on their side."

Hazel hopped out of the bathroom, brushing by Nico and shooting him a look of doubt- a look Percy happened to catch as she left.

She didn't have faith in the plan, and in all honesty, neither did Percy. The last time the Giants saw Percy, he was escaping along with the demigods he was supposed to kill. That's a little hard to brush off. Whatever Percy said to them, it had to be convincing. Percy was no Tom Cruise, but he could act fairly well. He did once get Procrustes- or Crusty, for short- to lie down in one of his own water deathbeds, and he tricked Phineas into drinking Gorgon blood. He could do this.

It didn't take long for Percy to suit up. The others kept busy by experimenting with outfits and weapons to give them a slightly monstrous appearance; it was Piper's charm speak and Hazel's Mist that would be the key to a convincing disguise in the end. As he tied the final leather strap on his armor, Percy noticed that nobody had looked him in the eyes since Hazel had turned them orange again. Of course, Percy understood why. The last time they saw him with those eyes, he had turned into a mindless murderer.

Percy must have looked pretty spaced out because Jason came over and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey bro, are you feeling okay?"

"Hmm?" Percy turned to face his friend. Jason noticeably cringed. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Just pre-battle jitters. We'll be killing a lot of people-"

"Monsters," Jason corrected him.

"Right, monsters." Percy paused. "Jason, have you ever considered the fact that they're goal is the same as ours? The monsters want to kill all the demigods. The demigods want to kill all the monsters."

"That may be true, but they're declaring war by ambushing our homes."

"What do you think we're doing? _We_ are attacking _their_ home today. We're no better than they are."

"Percy." Jason took him by the shoulders. "Monsters come back from the dead. Demigods don't."

Percy didn't reply.

"We can't afford to think of them as people. We kill to protect ourselves, and today is not the day to start doubting our own motives. We're the good guys, don't worry."

Jason smiled sympathetically at Percy, and Percy gave him a small smile in return.

"Let's not waste anymore time, then," Percy responded.

Jason clapped Percy on the back. "That's the Percy Jackson I know."

Percy made his way to the door, and with his hand on the handle, turned around.

"See you on the other side," Percy called back.

"Good luck," Piper replied, and the others called out various good-byes.

"Time to outwit some idiots," Percy declared, swinging the door open wide and stepping out into the hallway. Percy felt confident until he heard the slam and click of the door closing behind him. _This plan is crazy,_ he thought to himself. Then, straightening his back, he mumbled out loud, "Good thing I'm crazy."

Percy had no idea where to find the Giants, so he decided to wonder about until he found one. Solid plan. He walked down the right side of the hall, running Riptide along the stone walls and stepping loudly. He figured that if the Giants heard someone obnoxiously traipsing through the corridors, they'd come to him.

"Gee," he yelled. "I could sure go for some demigod blood right now." No response. Percy sighed and descended the first staircase he came across, jumping down each step so that each echo layered loudly on top of its predecessor. He kept Riptide unsheathed, just in case he came across a monster that killed first and asked questions later.

The corridors blurred together, turning into a twisting trail of left, right, right, left, right, staircase, left, staircase, right, etc. He went up and down, all over the Headquarters, completely undisturbed.

 _Where is everybody?_ he wondered.

"Hey guys!" Percy called out, turning into a corridor on his left. "V.I.D. out here! Very important demigod. Ju-"

The door in front of Percy flew open, startling Percy so much that as he swung his sword, he accidentally cut his other hand, leaving blood on the blade. Percy hissed and pressed his hand against his shirt underneath the chest plate.

In front of him, it was not a monster but Dr. Derideo who left the room- and froze upon seeing Percy.

"Perseus Jackson!" he exclaimed, bright eyes wide. A creepy grin spread across the mad scientist's face. "I caught you! I found him!" He lunged forward as if to grab Percy, but the demigod kept his sword in between himself and Dr. Derideo. _You're friends,_ Percy reminded himself. _You are on the same side._

"Actually, Doctor, I'm here to turn myself in." This caught the doctor by surprise. "You see, I was talking to Kelli the Empousa earlier today, and she made me realize that you and I aren't so different. We both want to destroy the other side for the same reason- to protect ourselves. That got me thinking, 'What have the demigods ever done for me?' I've got more respect here. So I've deci-"

"Why are your eyes still orange?" Dr. Derideo cut Percy off, face twisted in confusion.

"What?"

"Why are your eyes still orange?" Dr. Derideo asked again, head cocked to the side like a curious cat.

"Uh, your potion?" Percy replied, fidgeting with his shirt hem with his injured hand. The other kept Riptide poised.

"My potion lasts for 12 hours," Dr. Derideo explained, "and it's been well over 12 hours since administering it. How are your eyes still orange?"

Percy's mouth went dry. He'd forgotten about that little detail.

"Oh, well, you see… I surrendered last night. I spent the night in my room upstairs, and… and one of the Giants came in with a fresh dose of Hyde. I'm fresh and ready to go!" Percy finished with fake enthusiasm. His heart felt like it was punching his ribcage with each word.

"I didn't give any Giant a v-"

"Well, he got it somehow," Percy rushed, wrapping his free hand around the doctor's shoulders and steering him back into the room from which he'd come. "It's best not to question it. Heck, I don't even know where everyone is right now, much less the workings of the Giants' inner circle. This is only my third day here, you know."

"But I don't-"

"Ask the Giants, then!" Percy interrupted, pushing the doctor back inside. He was just about to slam the door shut when he paused to add, "When you see them, tell the Giants that Percy was looking for them."

Dr. Derideo was still stunned from Percy's outburst, but he was able to focus on the demigod once more to say, "Oh, I won't be seeing them today. Hmm! Too busy today, they say. They just use me and throw me out like an old equation."

Now it was Percy's turn to look confused. "Too busy? Too busy with what?"

"The Opening! Your grand unveiling! It's this evening- and you should be going!" Dr. Derideo shoved Percy out of the doorway. "You'd better hurry down to the courtyard." With that, the door shut with a loud _boom._

"Huh," Percy muttered. "Surprisingly helpful." Finally sheathing Riptide, Percy sprinted down the halls, taking every staircase down. The farther down he got, the fewer doors there were. He had finally left the countless dormitories behind. When he finally reached the ground floor, he found himself facing a large archway that led out to a dark green courtyard, looking to be twice the size of a football field. The headquarters wrapped around it in a square shape, and because of the morning sun, half of the courtyard was covered in shadow. However, the immense size was not what threatened Percy.

It was the hundreds of monsters packed into the field, all suited in gleaming bronze and gold armor and chatting amongst themselves with bared teeth and claws extended.

Percy gulped and his knees locked. It was as if his body was screaming, _Don't do it, idiot! They'll kill you!_ But, like always, Percy ignored reason.

He strutted forward, walking nonchalantly through the masses like he belonged- which was exactly what he needed the others to think. His brain's internal monologue became constant screaming and occasional curse words as he brushed by fur, slid against scales, and pushed through arms and legs of all shapes and sizes.

He finally reached the center of the courtyard, where a circular stage had been built. It was simple and wooden, but it was tall enough to be seen from all sides around the field. Next to it stood Forterae, Hectamedes, and Aralus.

"Giants," Percy announced, his voice booming louder than he'd expected. The three commanders of the army turned to face Percy.

Aralus roared, "You dare show your face here again? I will kill you, rip you from limb to limb, and stab you through the heart before I-"

Forterae held up a hand, motioning for Aralus to stop. The Giant reluctantly did so, taking a step back. She then pointed at Percy with a large indigo finger. "Friend… or foe?" she asked, her voice thundering amidst the silence of the army.

"Friend," Percy affirmed, reaching out to shake hands with Forterae.

Thousands of voices began yelling and shrieking, all in disbelief and outrage.

"He killed Callisthenes!"

"He's a demigod!"

_"I hate him!"_

Even before Percy's escape, the monsters hadn't wanted his help. Everyone had a bone to pick with the son of Poseidon, and the only reason that they had allowed him to work alongside them in the first place was because he was their only chance at winning this war. After he had turned his back on the Giants, however, the monsters thought that their leaders would finally see the truth and change their plan. Now, Forterae appeared to be giving the wretched half-blood a second chance.

"Silence!" Forterae commanded, and a hush fell over the monsters. She seemed to have been nominated as the new commander in Callisthenes absence. "Make your case."

"I am here to join your ranks," Percy began. "You were right. I understand the horrors we, the demigods, have put you monsters through. We have slaughtered you without cause, and I want to change that. It's time my people got a taste of their own medicine!"

Hectamedes raised his eyebrows and glanced at Forterae, but she said nothing. She waited for more proof of his allegiance. Percy's mind raced to find ways to persuade the monsters. His hand still burned from his cut earlier, and up until now, Percy had been blocking it out. Now it gave him an idea.

"During the escape, I slayed my former friends with my own sword!" he lied, unsheathing Riptide and holding it up for all to see. Blood stained the blade- but the monsters didn't have to know it was _his_ blood. "Their blood is on my own hands to show you that I am against the demigods." Then, pointing to his orange eyes, he yelled, "I found Dr. Derideo and had him give me enough Hyde to ensure that I do not betray you any more. I am on the side of the monsters. I _will_ fight with you." Percy bowed, and with his face hidden, he grimaced. He hated what he was saying with every fiber of his being.

Aralus roared. "I do not trust this weakling," he announced, grabbing Forterae by the arm. "He lied earlier, and he is lying again."

Forterae glared at Aralus and ripped her muscular arm out of his grasp before kneeling down beside Percy. She sniffed his sword before proclaiming, "It reeks of demigod! The boy tells the truth! He will bring Camp Half-Blood to the ground with us. He will drown _every last demigod_ on this planet!" She shook Percy's hand.

The army cheered, roaring and yelling in a cacophony of noise. Aralus, however, was furious, eyes burning into Percy's soul. _He doesn't believe me,_ Percy thought to himself. Percy approached the Giant, marching strongly forward before saluting Aralus. "I am at your service."

"I hope so," Aralus growled. "If you betray us, I will personally see to it that you are forced to watch your precious camps being burned and everyone you love being murdered."

"With any luck," Percy replied with his signature mischievous grin, "I'll be the one murdering them."


	10. The Opening Ceremony

Percy sat at the end of a long wooden table, head resting heavily in his left hand, and bounced his twentieth grape down the table.

As soon as Percy had approached the Giants and Forterae had declared his allegiance, she ordered Hectamedes to lead Percy over to a large conference room, the doors to which were located on the right edge of the courtyard. The big green giant had swung open one of the wooden double doors, shoved Percy inside, grumbled, "Wait here," and slammed it shut without another word. The long, rectangular room was fairly empty, except for the long wooden table in the middle by which Percy now sat. The maroon walls absorbed the faint light of the torches, making it feel like evening rather than early morning, but Percy didn't mind. He was too distracted by the buffet of fruit and vegetables that had been laid out along the center of the table. Percy tugged out the chair at the head of the table and happily snacked for a good ten minutes before boredom hit.

And what better way to handle ADHD than to play with the grapes provided?

"Rainbow in the sky, Rainbow in the sea. Swim and count along with me," Percy mumbled absentmindedly as he picked up Grape #21 and bounced it, counting each bounce under his breath. _"One…two…three…"_

"Rainbow, Rainbow," was a game Percy had created earlier that summer in Camp Half-Blood to entertain the toddlers. He had promised a few of them a ride on Rainbow, the hippocampi, and while they waited for the mythical seahorse to arrive, Percy taught them how to skip stones. In a matter of minutes, Percy had fabricated the short rhyme and sung it with the kids as they counted their stones' skips.

Percy shot straight up in his seat when he heard a squeak. "Hello?" he called out, and was both relieved and disappointed to spot a tiny grey mouse running across the floor a few feet away from him.

"What's up, Mickey Mouse?" Percy grinned, leaning back in his chair. The mouse, of course, did not answer. Instead, it scampered along the wall towards the door without glancing at Percy.

"Trying to escape, huh, buddy?" Percy sighed, watching the tiny rodent try to wriggle under the door. He sighed. "Me too."

Suddenly, the door slammed open with enough power to fling the mouse all the way down the room. In the looming archway stood a tall, angry Giant- Forterae. She trained her single silver eye on Percy, grimaced, and pulled the door shut behind her.

"Perseus Jackson," was all she said as she crossed over to the opposite end of the table.

"Commander Forterae," Percy replied, scooting back his chair and standing in order to bow. "I'd like to take this moment to say that I am honored to-"

"Do you take us for a gaggle of idiots?" she thundered, stopping at her end of the table but refusing to take a seat. Percy remained standing.

"Do I- no, of course not!" Percy responded, dumbfounded. This was the same Giant who just saved his lying butt out in the field, and now she'd turned on him?

Forterae didn't say anything; she just continued to glare at the son of Poseidon from 20 yards away.

"I'm sorry," Percy began, shaking his head, "Did I miss something? I thought-"

"You thought we would immediately buy your excuses?" Forterae finished for him.

"Excuses?"

"Perseus, I am old enough to know not to trust a demigod- especially one claiming he has had a sudden change of heart."

"Ma'am- or, um, your Highness?- I assure you, I speak only the truth." Sweat beaded on Percy's forehead. _This is going to be harder than I thought._ "My time here has really shown me-"

" _BE QUIET!_ " yelled Forterae, slamming her massive indigo hands on the table, shaking the food and sending tremors throughout the room.

Percy's jaw snapped shut.

Forterae took a deep breath, wiped her hands on her gleaming armor, and reclaimed her composure. "Listen to me. I do not trust you. I doubt that you trust me, no matter what you claim. The blood on your bronze blade is indeed demigod blood, but I do not know how that fight went or if your friends are even dead. Even with Dr. Derideo's potion, I only know that I can rely on you in battle- without another demigod to fight, you are your regular self- and, as I told you yesterday, I hate your regular self." She paused, searching Percy's face for a reaction.

 _I doubt she could notice anything useful from that far away,_ Percy mused to himself. Even from this distance, Forterae was an intimidating presence. She had a regal attitude, one that reminded Percy of Reyna- you know, if Reyna was over 20 feet tall and had muscles as big as Cabin Three.

"Can I speak?" Percy asked, struggling to suppress his urge to make a sarcastic comment.

"Yes," Forterae answered, finally taking a seat. Percy stood still.

"If you don't trust me, then why did you tell the entire army that you do?"

Forterae delicately picked up an apple from the table's buffet, which she held between her thumb and forefinger as if it were a crumb. "I need them to believe that you will help us. You are vital to our victory, but so is unity. If my army is divided, it cannot succeed. Besides," she continued, popping the apple into her mouth and swallowing it without chewing, "I do believe that you understand our cause. You understand the strife your kind has put us through, how difficult the life of a monster is. You've also received more Hyde, which will incline you to follow us."

"You're right," Percy agreed, ready to launch into another loyalty monologue. Forterae glanced down the table at him from the corner of her eye. "I do understand your struggles. In fact, I was just talking to my friends- uh, you know, right before I killed them- about how we treat you no different than you treat us. We aren't that different, you and I."

Percy could tell that he had Forterae's attention, something he couldn't afford to lose. He needed her to trust him. As Percy talked, he realized that the scary thing wasn't the concept anymore, no. It was that Percy felt _excited_. The more he talked, the more he was convinced that he was right. What right did the demigods have to slaughter every monster they came across? Everyone is always trying to protect themselves, and with a mutual truce, there would be so many- _so many_ \- lives saved. Silena wouldn't have had to fight the Drakon. Beckendorf wouldn't have had to sacrifice himself to destroy the Princess Andromeda. His own mother wouldn't have been squeezed to dust by the Minotaur.

Percy knew that what he was asking for was impossible, but what if…what _if…_

"I want to help you," Percy finished. "I support your cause, and if Camp Half-Blood can't see the reasoning in it, then it's time we teach them the true meaning of power." He was breathing hard. He didn't remember pacing the room, but he found himself a few feet away from the table. He coughed awkwardly and took a seat.

"I believe you," Forterae conceded, and Percy let out a sigh of relief and sunk in his seat.

"…for now."

"For now?"

Forterae rose. "I don't have much of a choice. I need your allegiance, and I don't have much time to lose. We leave for Camp Half-Blood tonight."

Percy choked on his own spit. " _What?_ "

Forterae slowly walked towards Percy. "Is that a problem?"

Percy hurriedly got to his feet, scrambling to meet Forterae at the doors. "No, no, of course not. In fact, it's great news! The sooner the better!" Percy lied through his teeth. How was he going to contact Camp beforehand and warn them? Their mission was to stop the army before it left the headquarters, and now Percy wasn't so sure it was going to happen.

Forterae held her hand in front of Percy to block him from exiting first. "Two last things. First, let me do all the talking during the Opening. Stand still and do what we say. Understood?"

Percy nodded.

"Second, any attempts at mutiny will result in your imprisonment and the death of any and every human we come across on the journey. Don't call in any demigods or Olympians for help. I am taking a large risk in trusting you; don't let me down."

Forterae pushed open the doors, and Percy left right behind her. A wave of anxiety washed over Percy as she led him through the crowd of monsters that seemed to have grown even thicker since the last time Percy'd been out there. The monsters parted automatically for their Commander, so Percy had a clear view of their resentful glances as he passed right behind.

 _Don't call in any gods,_ she had said. _The death of any and every human we come across,_ she had threatened.

Percy didn't know what to do. He could pray to Athena in a desperate plea of aborting the plan, but the demigods needed her help. _Where's Annabeth when you need her?_ Percy thought. She's usually the one coming up with the plans.

A long scaly tail swiped out after Forterae walked by, nearly tripping Percy. Percy glared at the monster, who shrugged comically as if to say, _Whoops, my bad._ As they passed monster after monster, Percy looked to see if he could spot his friends in their disguises. The farther they walked, the more he worried. He saw no signs of any monsters acting stranger than the rest. _I guess that's a good thing_ , he thought. _That means their disguises are working._

Forterae led Percy straight to the wooden circle in the middle of the field, but the stage was no longer empty. Two giant torches stood guard on each side, and in the center was a large golden spear with a golden, roaring lion's head on top. It reminded Percy of the Twelfth Legion's eagle standard, except more…unnerving.

Aralus, Hectamedes, and the white, blue, and orange giants stood on the stage already. Percy quickly realized that were no stairs on the stage- the giants had simply stepped up onto it. He was about to bring this up when Forterae grabbed Percy in her fist, squeezing the air out of him. She carried him up and on to the stage and stood next to Hectamedes. Percy gasped for air as she released him and set him on the wood.

Thousands of eyes stared at Percy from below, and Percy stared right back. He wanted to flee. He wanted to fight. He wanted to do _something_.

But he couldn't.

" _MONSTERS!_ " Aralus roared, quieting the remaining chatter between the troops. All fell silent and still.

"As you are all aware, we have gathered here today in order to finally get revenge on the wicked beings that have terrorized us for centuries. They have slaughtered our families, destroyed our homes, and annihilated our world. These horrid little terrors are none other than… the demigods."

Every monster's voice rose to the heavens, echoing around the headquarters with screams and shrieks of outrage and fury. Each shout felt like a burn on Percy's skin, as if he was standing in front of a blazing furnace. It was miracle that a riot hadn't broken out and killed Percy right there and then. In fact, Percy wouldn't have been surprised if Aralus just stabbed him out of spite. _Forterae better make my case sound convincing,_ Percy gulped, _or else I'm a goner_.

"The Great Vinomi is allowing us to return the favor," Aralus continued once the raging crowd had died down. _Who's Vinomi?_ Percy wondered. From the sound of it, Vinomi was probably the leader of the operation, the man to whom even the Giants served. "We will slaughter their families and destroy their homes. We will kill and kill again. "

"However," Forterae interrupted, "the only way to win is with a secret weapon. We need a way into Camp Half-Blood and a way to ensure our victory- and what better way to drag them through the mud than to turn their beloved hero against them?"

She shoved Percy forward so that he stood near the front edge of the stage. Once again, the monsters cheered bloody murder, scaly fists pumping and fanged mouths calling for revenge. A few monsters were even pushing their way closer to the stage. He could hear talons scraping the wood at the base of the stage, and Percy was doing everything in his power to not draw Riptide. He felt exposed, completely vulnerable. The armor he wore could do nothing against the pure hate filling the sky and choking Percy.

"Perseus Jackson is here to help us kill the demigods. He has sworn his allegiance to us, and to ensure his support, Dr. Derideo has administered to him a potion that forces him to kill every demigod he sets eyes on."

A chorus of _Oohs_ and _Aahs_ followed. "Bonoas," Forterae said to the blue giant, pointing towards the floor of the stage. Bonoas tapped his tightly sandal-clad foot on a loose-looking section of panels, and they sunk down in response like a trapdoor. Out from underneath the stage rose a new group panels, this time with someone bound sitting on it.

It was a demigod.

Percy's heart skipped a beat, and he whipped around to look at the Giants. Forterae raised her an eyebrow as a challenge. She was testing him.

Percy turned to look back at the poor demigod tied with course ropes. It was a boy of about 16 years, with red hair that looked suspiciously redder and sticky in some areas. A mass of freckles were splashed all over his face, and he turned to look back at Percy with tired, vacant brown eyes. He really believed that Percy was going to kill him.

"Um," was all Percy could think to say. _Come on!_ his brain yelled at him. _Don't let them suspect anything is wrong!_ Percy unsheathed Riptide and crowd went wild. Even from this distance, Percy noticed the boy's eyes watering, and Percy felt a pang in his heart. Shaking his head, Percy sprinted towards the demigod, sliding across the paneling until he was in front of the boy. He grabbed the demigod by collar of his sweaty shirt and pulled him close enough so that he could whisper in his ear.

"Play dead," Percy growled.

"Wh-What?" the boy whimpered.

"Just _do it!_ "

Percy swung Riptide dramatically out to his right before slicing the boy's throat ever so slightly. Riptide drew blood, but it was merely a scratch. The demigod yelped and promptly fainted, which was more than Percy had asked for but worked all the same.

Percy turned towards the audience and hefted his sword high above his head. The monsters cheered, whooping and clapping at the murder. _This is wrong,_ Percy thought, but he kept a smug smile plastered on his face.

Aralus reached down and plucked the "dead" body off the stage and held it up high above his head. "FEAST ON THE FIRST BLOOD OF WAR!" he screamed; he threw the unconscious boy into the crowd.

"Wait!" Percy yelled, hand flying to his mouth as soon as the word left it. The ginger's body flew into the crowd, slamming heavily on top of a very surprised draconae.

Then everything went wrong.

The draconae's body started to flicker, the green scales disappearing for milliseconds before flashing back to life. Percy walked towards the edge of the stage to get a closer look. Three of the surrounding monsters looked on in worry- one even tried to grab the fallen draconae. Suddenly, the draconae's body disappeared completely, and in its place lay a second unconscious demigod- Hazel Levesque.

"Oh no," Percy whispered. The three concerned monsters' bodies flickered as well, revealing a very nervous Piper, Nico, and Jason in their place. And if everyone was back to normal, that mean that Percy's eyes were no longer orange.

"What is the meaning of this?" yelled Hectamedes, wielding his axe. He pointed it towards Percy, who turned to see the blade a foot from his chest. Big mistake. The Giants gasped when they saw his green eyes- eyes that _didn't_ glow with a hunger for demigod blood.

"Liar!" Hectamedes screamed, and just as he lifted his weapon to slice Percy in half, a blinding flash of light appeared farther away in the crowd. Percy shielded his eyes, and when he looked again, he saw Athena standing there in full battle armor.

"You've got to be kidding me," Percy groaned, dragging his hands down his face in frustration. "Out of all the times to show up, you wait until _now?_ "

Percy stole a glance at Forterae. The purple giant glowered at him and raised a finger to drag across her throat. Percy had broken her trust, and she would make him pay.

"You and your weak forces will never diminish the might of the Olympians!" Athena announced, raising her golden shield. Percy made eye contact with Piper in the crowd, and together they nodded. It was now or never.

"For Olympus!" Percy called, raising Riptide in response to Athena's declaration of war.

"For Olympus!" Piper yelled, and all hell broke loose.

Athena swung her sword through the masses, leaving a trail of monster dust in its path. Empousai climbed over laistrogonians and draconae fought manticores to get closer to their new attackers. The cacophony of noise drowned out all reasoning in Percy's mind. He had to fight, and even though it looked like a suicide mission, he had to try. Hectamedes' axe slammed down just as Percy vaulted off of the stage and into the crowd. He rolled to a stop in front of Nico and Jason.

"What's up?" he asked casually, taking Jason's hand and standing up.

"That was an impressive fake-out up there," Nico told Percy, referencing the ginger demigod's fake death.

"Yeah, well, now we need to protect both him and Hazel," Percy replied, gesturing towards the two unconscious demigods laying in tangled pile. "Jason, fly them to safety. We'll fight here."

Jason grabbed the demigods and shot off into the air, dodging the arrows that chased him. Piper, Percy, and Nico stood back to back, and together they fought harder than they'd ever fought before. Claws, blades, and armor glinted blindingly in the sun as clashes and clangs rang out among the cries of war. Monster after monster scratched and punched to kill the demigods, but the three half-bloods held their ground.

"We can't keep this up forever," Nico panted as he beheaded another monster. Piper stabbed one through the heart before replying, "We need a plan- and fast."

Percy had an idea, but he wasn't sure if he should risk it. The power it'd recquire… he'd only done it once before, and that was on accident. What if he passed out, like Nico did after shadow traveling? Percy cut through a stymphalian bird.

"Guys, I have a plan, but I need some room. Cover me." Piper and Nico cut an arch through the crowd, temporarily clearing the area in front of them. Percy twirled Riptide, ran forward, and plunged the sword into the ground. At first, nothing happened, and Percy was going to cry in desperation. Then, the ground began to shake. What was at first a slight tremor grew to a violent shake, knocking monsters off their feet and toppling the troops.

"Percy!" Piper yelled in astonishment. "How did you-"

"Poseidon's the god of earthquakes as well as the ocean," Percy answered, yanking Riptide out of the ground. He felt drained, but he wasn't going to pass out- thank the gods. "Nico, call the skeleton army."

Nico nodded and held out his hand towards the ground. The already shaken ground cracked easily and split open with enough force to knock Piper, Percy, and Nico over. The trenches widened and raced down the field, splitting the grass and gulping down any monster unfortunate enough to stand in its way.

An eerie cry sounded from the bottom of the crevice, and it wasn't long before a spooky scary skeleton hand clasped on to the rim of the crack and heaved its bony self out and into battle. Dozens of skeletons poured out and attacked everything around them.

"For Olympus!" Nico cheered, pumping his fist in the air.

While the demigods were busy calling in the dead soldiers, Athena had problems of her own to deal with. Aralus, Hectamedes, and Forterae had her surrounded, and she was battling all three simultaneously. She blocked a swipe from Hectamedes' axe and stabbed out to the side, cutting Aralus's forearm. Forterae managed to land a blow on Athena's shoulder, which the goddess responded to with a blast of bright light, briefly blinding the giant. The stomping of those skyscraper beings forced a ring of space among the monsters. Anyone trying to join in the fight would get trampled in seconds.

Piper's dagger was flying as fast as a hawk, slicing and cutting in a blur of destruction.

"You don't want to kill me," Piper told them, laying on the Charmspeak. A few monsters slowed, lowering their weapons, and Piper took the opportunity to stab each through the heart. Unfortunately, she could only affect a few at a time. Her voice needed to be louder. _Much_ louder.

Bonoas, the blue giant, was stomping his way over to the demigods, kicking skeletons and monsters alike out of his way. Piper smirked; she had a plan. Sprinting away from Percy and Nico, she raced towards Bonoas, surprising him. Why was this puny demigod coming _towards_ him and not fleeing in terror? Piper jumped up on to his foot and drove her dagger into his shin.

Howling, Bonoas smacked down by his ankle, trying to squash the daughter of Aphrodite. Piper jumped out of the way just in time and latched on to his hand. When he pulled away, he carried her with him. Piper clung on for dear life as the wind from the speed of his movement rustled her hair and blocked her vision. It reminded her of the time she had ridden _Superman_ at Six Flags- the g-force was incredible. Bonoas hadn't noticed his rider, and as soon as his arm stilled, she climbed quickly up it, using the armor and leather straps as footholds. She made it all the way up to his shoulder, where she grabbed on to a black dreadlock as if it was a vine. Piper shimmied up so that she hung right next to his ear.

"Tell your army to stop," Piper ordered, but Bonoas just swatted by his ear, barely missing Piper. She leaned to try again- and this time it had to work.

"Tell your army to _STOP!_ " Piper demanded, pouring everything she had into her command.

Bonoas froze and promptly yelled, "STOP!" The monsters all hesitated, rightly confused by their Commander's orders.

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS!" Piper yelled, and Bonoas echoed her words. A few monsters did so, but many just looked even more confused.

"Bonoas, what are you doing?" Hectamedes yelled from across the field, looking away from his personal swordfight with Athena.

Piper was grinning from ear to ear. She hadn't expected her plan to work this well.

"RETREAT!" Piper yelled jovially. She was having so much fun that she almost ordered them to do the chicken dance.

"Shut up, Bononas!" Aralus thundered, fists clenched.

"RETR-" Bonoas began, but he cut himself off. Bonoas had never told anybody, but Aralus scared him silly, and his fellow Commander's words were more convincing than a measly charmspeaker's. "You little trickster!" he bellowed, and he shook his head to try and shake Piper off.

Piper screamed, digging her hands into the mess of hair to prevent being thrown up into the air. Bonoas reached into his mess of dreadlocks and combed through roughly. To anybody watching, it looked like he was violently trying to swat off a bee.

A wall of blue slammed into Piper, and she was launched into the air with no means of landing safely.

"Piper!" Percy and Nico called in shock, completely helpless.

"HELP ME!" she shrieked, plummeting towards the ground with her arms flailing. Suddenly, a blonde blur sped through the air and collided with Piper mid-fall, saving her from being a Piper pancake.

Jason Grace smiled at Piper, who he had cradled in his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck and held him tight. "Oh my gods," she breathed, "I thought I was going to die."

"I'll always be here to catch you," Jason assured her, and he kissed her on the head. "Let's go join the others." He landed next to Percy and Nico, who were plenty busy. Percy was battling a Hydra and trying not to cut off the heads. He'd duck under and aim for the heart, but each time one of its head snapped down in front of him. Nico was fighting off a very skilled Cyclops wielding a mace. Nico had a scrape on his arm already, and just as he lunged, the mace connecting with his chestplate, sending him flying backwards into Percy.

In the distance, the white and orange giants were swarmed with skeletons, and no matter how many they brushed off, more kept coming. Bonoas was wading his way through the army towards Athena, who was still fighting Aralus and Forterae. Hectamedes was looking for the demigods, scanning the multitudes of monsters by his feet.

Suddenly, Athena materialized next to the demigods, stabbing her giant sword through the hydra's back and exploding it into dust. She had golden ichor dripping down her left arm and stains of it on her white dress. Her piercing eyes locked with Percy's, who was untangling himself from a red-faced Nico.

"We need to kill the Giants first," Athena explained. "The rest of the monsters can wait." She knelt down and held out her left hand. "I cannot kill them without a demigod." Percy climbed onto her hand, followed by Piper and Nico. Athena lifted them up closer to her face; Jason flew.

"I will place each of you on a Giant, and we will stab together. Got it?"

The demigods nodded, and Athena ran across the field towards the orange and white giants. She plucked Piper from the bunch and lightly tossed her on to the ugly orange giant. He yelled and banged his fist against his armor as Piper collided with the metal and slid down until she hung from the edge of his chestplate. A strip of orange skin was visible just below her.

"Now!" Athena commanded, and together Piper stabbed his stomach and Athena sliced his throat. The giant screamed and crumbled before their eyes, turning into a pile of sand and armor. Piper crawled out from the remains and gave Athena a thumbs up. The goddess proceeded to grab and Nico and throw him towards the white giant. This giant raised his sword to cut Athena, but Nico latched on to his leg and simultaneously stabbed as Athena blocked the swing and cut his arm. The white giant didn't have time to say anything before he crumbled as well.

Athena brought Jason and Percy with her as she sprinted across the field, crushing monsters underfoot, and skidded to a halt next to the four remaining giants. Jason zoomed towards Hectamedes, where he landed on the giant's green nose and drove his imperial gold sword into Hectamedes' forehead. Hectamedes roared and grabbed Jason off of his face- just as Athena cut his arm clean off and stabbed him through the side.

Jason was pulled into the pile of sand as the hand grasping him dissolved, but he managed to climb out before drowning in it.

"Your turn," Athena said to Percy, and just as she prepared to throw him to Aralus, Forterae came up from behind Athena and snatched Percy out of her hand.

"We are not losing you," she growled, crushing the air from Percy's lungs. Percy wanted to call out, maybe make a snarky remark, but there was no air to carry his words. "You may have betrayed us, but we can still control you. You are our weapon of mass destruction, Perseus."

Percy bit her hand.

Forterae scowled and turned towards Athena. "Leave now, and I will spare these few demigods."

"I fight till the end," Athena grimaced, wielding her sword and shield. "Drop him so we can do this right."

Forterae stepped closer to Athena so that the goddess's eyes were solely trained on the giant. Percy wriggled in her hand, but his arms were clamped to his side and he couldn't reach Riptide. He couldn't kill Forterae. He did, however, notice movement behind Athena. Aralus was approaching the goddess from behind, sword poised to strike.

" _Athena!_ " Percy yelled, and Aralus ran his sword through the goddess's gut. Athena gasped, eyes widening. She glanced down at the metal point sticking out of her abdomen, which was quickly yanked back and out of her body. Ichor ran down her body, turning her dress a creepily beautiful golden color as if she'd been touched by Midas.

"Impossible," she muttered. "I couldn't have…according to the…how did I…"

Athena glanced at Percy solemnly. She wouldn't die, of course, but she couldn't go on fighting. Her body began to glow, and Percy looked away as she revealed her true form and disappeared. As a parting gift, the light incinerated every monster within a twenty-yard radius- except for the giants and demigods, who knew better than to look at an Olympian's true form.

Forterae scanned the field, taking in what was left of her army. All was quiet. Many monsters were panting, and many more had injuries. Even with all the demigods' and Athena's hard work, only a quarter of the army had been killed. Half of the giants were left, as well. A thin layer of dust coated the grass, the only real sign that there had been so much death. Forterae brought Percy up to her eyes, and she growled, "This changes nothing."

She turned to look at her tired and bedraggled forces. "We must avenge our fallen brothers," she announced with passion, gesturing at the dusty field around her. "We go to Camp Half-Blood _now_. First aid will be offered on the ships and in front of the Headquarters. Grab the weapons of the dead, and use them to kill twice as many demigods! Soldiers, today we fight for blood!"

As worn out as they were, the monsters cheered and stampeded out of the arena, crowding the halls of Headquarters. Everyone seemed to have forgotten about the four demigods left in the field.

Aralus and Bonoas stormed across the grass and snatched up Nico, Piper, and Jason, all of whom were exhausted. Together, the giants gathered at the wooden stage, where Forterae dropped Percy and the others. Percy collapsed as soon as he was let go, breathing hard and shaking from the lack of oxygen.

Piper, Nico, and Jason were set down on the other end of stage, and before they could move, Bonoas threw a weighted net over them.

"There will be no more tricks," the blue giant grumbled, stepping away so that Aralus could approach the demigods.

"I admire your effort, but it will earn you nothing." He turned to face Percy, who had gathered enough energy to stand up. "You are a traitor and a scoundrel, Perseus Jackson. We do not trust you, but unfortunately, we do need you."

Forterae stood next to Aralus and gently pushed him out of the way. "On the journey to Camp Half-Blood, we will be giving you more of the Hyde…" She paused. "…but I'm not taking any chances." She reached under the net and grabbed Nico by the legs, dragging him out. She plopped him center stage and drew her sword, thrusting it under his chin.

"Swear on the River Styx that you will _kill_ a demigod during the battle, or I will kill your friend right now."

"What?" Percy yelled incredulously.

"Swear that you will kill a demigod!"

"No!"

"Swear it!" Forterae pressed the blade closer to Nico's neck.

"No!" Percy's heart was pounding in his chest.

She drew blood. Piper and Jason looked on in horror.

" _Swear you will kill a demigod!_ "

" _No!_ " Percy was frozen. He didn't know what to do.

Nico gulped, legs shaking in fear.

" _SWEAR IT!_ "

Forterae braced to slice Nico's head clean off his body. Her muscles tightened, and the blade backed up to give her room to make a clean swipe.

" _SWEAR IT!_ " The blade swung back.

"SWEAR-"

" _I swear on the River Styx!_ " Percy screamed desperately, stopping the blade an inch from Nico's bleeding throat. As soon as the words sounded, Percy's hands clapped over his mouth. _What have I done?_ he whimpered in his head. _Oh gods, what have I done?_

Forterae shoved Nico back under the net, where Piper and Jason hugged him close.

"Aralus, take these three and drown them in the river."

"With pleasure," the red giant grinned maliciously, and he scooped up the bag of half-blood and sauntered out of the field.

Percy glared at Forterae, tears streaming down his face. "I hate you," was all he could say.

"The feeling's mutual," she shrugged. "But now I can count on at least one death from you." Percy sank to his knees. There was nothing he could have done. There was no way he would let Nico die- but now he was going to kill someone anyway. _There's got to be a way out,_ Percy thought. But he knew there wasn't. A swear on the Styx was binding.

"I can't risk anymore treachery today," Forterae said, and she motioned to Bonoas. The blue giant cracked his knuckles, made a fist, and bonked Percy on the head, knocking him unconscious. As his eyes closed, he heard Forterae add, "When he wakes up, he'll be on a boat sailing home." The thought of it made Percy sick.


	11. New Friends, Old Enemies

_5 minutes earlier…_

Hazel Levesque sawed through the last of Quincy Clark's ropes with her spatha, letting them slip down his frail, pale arms and pile on the floor. He looked up at her with his big brown eyes and gave her a half-hearted smile.

"Thanks," he whispered hoarsely, stretching his arms out in front of him. Hazel wanted to help him clean the dried blood out of his red hair, but she knew she didn't have time. The two hadn't spoken much since they'd woken from their comas- what do you say to the person who crash-landed on top of you after a giant threw him off stage?

Quincy had only been at Camp Jupiter for a month before he was kidnapped by a Cyclops and brought to live in the dungeons of the Monster HQ, where he ate little more than stale bread and soup for two weeks. Hazel had seen Quincy around a few times at Camp, but she'd never talked to him before. He was a son of Ceres, the Roman equivalent of Demeter, and was part of the Third Cohort. Children of Ceres tended to avoid children of Pluto; the slight scent of death that Nico and Hazel couldn't shake tended to make the plants wilt, so they purposely skirted around any activity involving close-quarters with the tree-hugging Ceres bunch.

Now, Hazel was alone with Quincy on top of a watchtower, the sun baking their skin and burning their hands when they touched the stone. Jason had flown them up there so that they'd be out of sight and out of the way, but Hazel figured he hadn't considered how they'd manage to get down again.

Hazel stood and crossed to the edge of the tower, only knee-high crenellation preventing her from toppling down ten stories and into the battle below.

Well, where there used to be a battle. She looked on in confusion, trying to make sense of the scene before her. The hundreds of monsters stood still, staring at Aralus, Bonoas, Forterae, and Athena. Forterae was holding something in her hand, but Hazel couldn't see what- or who- it was. _Why did they stop fighting?_ Hazel wondered. _Did we win?_ She doubted it.

Suddenly, Athena began to glow, and Hazel yelped before dropping to the ground, eyes shut tight. From down on the field, an explosion of light burst around the battleground as Athena revealed her true form and disappeared.

"What was that?" Quincy asked, shakily standing and walking over to Hazel. Hazel peeked through one eye before deciding all was clear, then turned around to look down at the field again.

"Athena…left," Hazel answered. She pulled Quincy to his knees so that he knelt beside her, hidden from the monsters below. "Why would she leave?"

Forterae began to yell, but Hazel couldn't understand what she said; her voice reverberated around the stone walls of the HQ circling the field, and what Hazel heard was muddled and unintelligible. Occasionally, the monsters would cheer in response to whatever was being declared, and each time Hazel's heart sunk in fear. From the sound of it, the demigods had lost- where were they? She couldn't spot any of them from so far away.

"Isn't that the kid who cut my throat?" Quincy asked, pointing to Forterae's fist.

"You're lucky he didn't cut your head off," grumbled Hazel as she squinted to see better; she gasped. She could barely see the messy black hair of her best friend being squeezed to death in the monster's grip. "Oh no, Percy…" Had Forterae figured out his trick? Had he been caught?

"Wait…Percy? As in, Percy Jackson?" Quincy asked, eyes wide.

"Yeah, Percy Jackson," Hazel responded, only half focused on what her partner was saying. "Why?"

"He's that guy that everyone always talks about at Camp. Wasn't he praetor once?"

Hazel didn't reply. She was too busy watching the monsters' strange actions. By now, they had started clearing the field- all except for the giants. The big blue and red ones were traipsing about the field, snatching people from the ground- her friends!

The giants dropped the demigods on the stage and threw a net over everyone but Percy.

"What's going _on?_ " Hazel asked no one in particular. Quincy was just as lost as she was.

"They didn't tell me much in jail," he whispered. "Just that they had a plan to destroy the camps, and it involved me. They failed to mention that I was going to be the sacrifice-"

"Shh!" Hazel interrupted, trying to listen to Forterae's echo-y speech. All of a sudden, Forterae dragged Nico out from under the net and held a sword to his throat.

"We have to help them!" exclaimed Hazel, heart beating faster. She scrambled to her feet and looked around for a ladder, or maybe a trapdoor. She needed to get down there and help.

A bout of shouting erupted from the stage as Forterae and Percy yelled at each other, but Hazel wasn't listening anymore. She knocked on a few stones, trying to see if they'd activate a secret exit.

"'Swear it,'" mumbled Quincy. Then, louder, he told Hazel, "She's telling Percy to swear something."

All of a sudden, Percy screamed, and Hazel rushed back to the edge of the tower. "Is Nico-?"

She sighed from relief as Nico was thrown back under the net. _Not hurt,_ she sighed inwardly.

Aralus scooped up the net and carried the demigods across the field, and Bonoas knocked Percy out.

"Why are they leaving him behind?" Hazel wondered. "I'm guessing they know he's working for us by now, so why haven't they killed him?"

She wanted to leave and follow the red giant, but what about Percy? She couldn't leave him behind. Forterae scooped up the limp body of the son of Poseidon and carried him in the opposite direction from Aralus.

"What now?" Quincy asked, and Hazel sat silently for a good twenty seconds before sighing, "Let's follow the red one."

"You mean Aralus? What about Percy? I mean, I'm not eager to meet the kid who could've killed me, but-"

"He wasn't going to kill you," Hazel shot back, grabbing the cut ropes and holding them up to see how long they were. "Percy can look intimidating, but he's one of the most honorable demigods I know. He would never kill another demigod without a really, really good cause."

"Hey, sorry," Quincy held up his hands in surrender. "Judging from all the stories I've heard about him, I know he's not someone to mess with. I heard that he nearly drowned Akhlys in her own tears and poison once, so you can't blame me for assuming the worst." Hazel didn't answer him; she just kept examining the ropes.

"What are you doing?"

"Do you think we could ties these back together and scale the tower?"

"Definitely not. This thing is, like, a hundred feet tall. At least."

"Do _you_ have any ideas?" Hazel asked, getting a bit exasperated with Quincy's countless questions. She already felt bad about leaving Percy to the giants, but she knew she needed as many of her friends back as possible. The lives of the many outweigh the lives of the few, and as Frank once told her, "It's our duty to help as many lives as we can, and sometimes we have to pay a price to do that." Hazel's head knew that she couldn't defeat Forterae, but her heart knew that if Percy died, it'd be her fault.

Besides, if she went after Aralus, she and Quincy would have three conscious demigods to fight on their side instead of one unconscious demigod. Percy would have to defend himself until she could come back for him.

Quincy peered over the outer edge of the tower and down at the forest below. "I found Aralus!" he announced, waving Hazel over. She dropped the ropes and looked out to see the giant heading for a rushing river snaking its way through the trees. Then, Quincy closed his eyes and held out his hand over the edge of the tower.

"What are you-?"

"Shh!" Quincy's eyebrows furrowed in concentration, and below them, Hazel heard the leaves rustling. Suddenly, a cluster of vines sprung up and crawled along the side of the tower, climbing higher and higher as their leaves and roots clung to the stone and sprawled out in a web of green. Soon, the vines reached the railing, where they fastened themselves tight and wrapped around the crenellation.

Quincy opened his eyes and grinned. "This, however, we _can_ scale down."

"Incredible," breathed Hazel. She brushed her fingertips along the vine. "And it's strong enough to hold us?"

"Of course," Quincy laughed. "Never doubt the work of a child of Ceres." He glanced at her hands, and the prideful smile was replaced by a tight-lipped frown. "Well, it _usually_ can hold us up…"

Hazel looked down and yanked her hand away. The vine had withered under her touch, crinkling and shrinking into flaky remains. "Oh," she gulped.

Quincy grabbed hold of the vines and swung one leg over the tower's crenellation. "Maybe if we go quickly, the vines won't have time to… uh, die."

Hazel gritted her teeth. Sometimes she hated being a child of Pluto. Not only could she summon cursed gems, but she could also kill plants with one touch. Fun. As a child, Hazel didn't know what she was, and for a demigod ignorance is bliss. She could be near plants with little to no effect. Even before her quest to Alaska, it hadn't really happened often. After the Second Great Prophecy, however, she noticed an increase in her power. Maybe her time in the Mediterranean had put her in touch with her "death" side. Piper had mentioned the strength of her Charmspeak increasing after the war, and Nico had little trouble shadow traveling nowadays. In all honesty, it explained the dramatic boost of power Percy had been experiencing. Tartarus had changed him- maybe not personality-wise, but in regards to power…he was different.

Quincy reached out and tapped her arm, his hesitation to touch her not going unnoticed. "Hey, I'll keep the vines alive. You'll be fine."

Hazel reluctantly climbed over and onto the criss-crossing vines on the outside of the wall, and together Quincy and Hazel descended. Quincy dropped from vine to vine like a monkey, despite his weak state, and Hazel caught a glimpse of him smiling. Two weeks devoid of nature starved him from the thing he loved most, and being surrounded by nature refreshed him. Hazel, on the other hand, was feeling the opposite of refreshed. The vines mostly stayed in tact, but as Hazel paused and glanced up, she noticed a trail of withered leaves following her.

She paused too long. The vines she clung to dissolved under her touch, and the one she stood on crumpled under her weight. Hazel shrieked as she fell, fingers scraping the wall, trying to grab another vine. Suddenly, something snaked around her waist and pulled tight. Hazel stopped sliding- even hung a few inches from the wall- because of a thick vine Quincy had sent down to her from a couple feet above. He was breathing hard and looked terrified.

"Are you okay?" he called down, arm outstretched as he controlled the vine.

"Yes, thank you," she breathed. The vine around her waist began to loosen as it deteriorated, but Quincy sent another one just in time. He carried her down the wall, switching vines every so often, and before she knew it she was placed delicately on the ground. Quincy hopped off the wall a few feet above the ground and landed next to Hazel. He stood and, looking at his freckled hand, took a breath and offered it to her with a smile. Hazel's eyes widened. "Look," he began awkwardly. "Ceres kids and Pluto kids don't usually get along, but we aren't going to get anywhere as enemies."

"Agreed," Hazel grinned, and she took his hand. "Although something tells me a handshake isn't going to be enough to fix the rivalry between Aralus and the others," she added. "We should get going." They ran off to the right of the vine wall and headed deeper into the forest, dodging trees and leaping over bushes until they heard the splashing of the river.

"Where's your little fish friend now?" a rough, booming voice laughed.

" _Aralus,_ " hissed Quincy, and he pulled Hazel behind one of the larger trees draped in vines. Hazel pushed away a dangling vine and peeked around the left side of the tree, and Quincy the right. Aralus held the net trapping Jason, Piper, and Nico over the river. He leaned closer and sneered at them with his sharp, pointed teeth sticking out like a white picket fence that had been wrecked in a tornado.

Piper shuffled to the front of the net, her leg falling through the holes every other step, until she was face to face with the giant.

"Listen up, Buttercup," she grimaced. "You will le-"

" _RARHG!_ " Aralus roared, and the demigods were shocked into silence. Piper looked taken aback. Then, shaking her head, she continued, "You wi-"

" _ROOAAAR!_ " Aralus boomed, grinning like a madman.

Piper glared at the giant. "Will you just let me-"

"NO!" Aralus yelled. "I will not let a daughter of Aphrodite charmspeak me into _helpessness._ " He shook the net, knocking the demigods into each other and causing Nico to elbow Jason in the gut.

"Time to die, brats." Aralus began to lower the net into the water.

"We need to do something," Hazel gasped. "Now."

"I don't think we can fight him and win," Quincy added pessimistically.

"We need a distraction," Hazel suggested. _If Percy were here, we could just drown Aralus, or redirect the river,_ she thought. Hazel couldn't control the water…but she could control the land _underneath,_ the water.

Aralus dunked the net under the water and dropped his heavy hand on top, keeping the three demigods under.

"Hazel, Hazel," Quincy tapped her arm over and over in a panic.

"I've got this," she replied and thrust her hand out towards the river. Then, she jerked her hand upwards, and the bedrock began to shake.

"What the-" Aralus began, and before he could finish, a giant slab of rock erupted from the bottom of the river right underneath the net, sending the water flying into Aralus's face as well as flinging his hand and the net into the air.

"Quincy, catch them!" Hazel demanded, and Quincy launched a vine from the tree out towards the half bloods. The plant wrapped around them and yanked them over to Quincy and Hazel. The three half bloods rolled to a stop, coughing and choking up water.

"Oh my gods," Hazel grinned, hands covering her mouth in relief. "You're okay."

"Define 'okay,'" groaned Nico, shoving Jason off of his legs and tugging the netting out of his hair. Then, spotting Quincy, he asked "Who are you?"

"Quincy Clark, the guy who got thrown into Hazel. Pleasure to meet you."

" _Where are my demigods?!_ " Aralus boomed, punching the slab of riverbed into oblivion and sending showers of rocks everywhere.

"We've got to go," Quincy whimpered. "We can't kill him alone."

"Stall him, then," Hazel ordered, gesturing to Quincy, Nico, and Piper. "Jason, call Tempest. We need to go rescue Percy."

"We don't have time," Jason replied. "We have to get back to Camp Half-Blood before the Giants' army arrives. They're preparing to leave right now."

"What?" Hazel asked incredulously.

"Guys! Make a _plan,_ " Piper growled as she stabbed Aralus's foot. She and Nico fought from the front, and Quincy kept tripping him from behind by making the roots of the trees grow farther up and out of the ground.

"We can't just leave him in the hands of the monsters, Jason," Hazel replied.

"I know, and I don't want to leave him, but we have to. He's made it this far, and he'll be able to keep things under control with the monsters- probably."

"Probably?"

"They still need him, so we know he won't die. We need to go prepare the Camp for war. At this point, it's all we can do." Hazel sighed in resignation. "Call Tempest." Jason whistled towards the sky, and Hazel did the same for Arion. It took mere seconds before a chorus of echoing neighs sounded down from the sky.

A beige blur sped through the trees and skidded to a halt at Hazel's side. "Arion," smiled Hazel. "Good to see you, buddy."

"Tempest!" Jason called as his storm cloud horse galloped down from the sky. "Ride's here," he called to the others. "Let's go!"

"See ya, buddy!" Piper yelled to Aralus, giving him a fake salute and sprinting towards Jason. She and Jason climbed aboard Tempest, and Quincy, Nico, and Hazel hopped aboard Arion.

"Where do you think you're going?" growled Aralus, standing up from the last time Quincy tripped him. He winced as his cut and bleeding feet brushed against the grass.

"We're _going_ to whoop your a-" Nico began, but Arion sprinted away before he could finish. Tempest took off into the sky, galloping away into the clouds as Aralus roared after them.

Arion quickly took the lead, speeding ahead of Tempest.

"How is this possible?" yelled Quincy, clinging to Nico in order to keep from falling off of the world's fastest horse.

"Don't ask questions and just enjoy it!" Hazel laughed, smiling as the wind raced by, blowing her hair out of her face and tugging at her hoodie.

The scenery transformed into a blur of greens, blues, and browns, whizzing by in an indescribable mural of speed.

"How do we know where we're going?" Quincy asked. "We don't even know where the HQ was!"

"Arion knows where we're going," she called back. Then, realizing that Arion might _not_ know where he's going, she whispered, "Arion, we're going to Camp Half-Blood, okay?" Arion whinnied loudly in response.

"Did he say 'yes?'" Quincy followed up.

"Honestly, I don't know- but I think it was a 'yes!' Percy's the one who speaks to horses, so I just make my best guess most of the time."

"Percy talks to horses?" he asked.

"It's kind of weird," Nico agreed. "But it's pretty cool at the same time."

"So what happened down in the field?" Hazel shouted back at her half-brother. "Why did Athena leave?"

"Well, everything went wrong all at once," Nico sighed, "After you got knocked out, the disguises went away and we were all discovered, then Athena showed up immediately after. The battle began, we killed half of the giants, and we were about to kill Forterae when she grabbed Percy and Aralus stabbed Athena."

"He stabbed a goddess?"

"Yep, so she had to leave us to fend for ourselves. That's when we got captured and…" Nico trailed off. He rubbed his throat absentmindedly. Hazel turned to see why Nico had stopped talking and saw the fresh cut across his throat, a fresh stream of blood slithering down his neck.

"Nico, what happened to you?"

He looked uncomfortable. "Um... Forterae held a sword to my throat and told Percy that unless he swore on the River Styx, she'd kill me."

"What did she want Percy to swear?" Hazel wasn't sure she wanted the answer.

Nico was quiet for a minute. "He swore that he'd kill a demigod in battle."

Nobody talked for the rest of the ride. Hazel's mouth hung open as she tried to process what Nico had just said. Percy had _sworn to kill_. Percy Jackson, the demigod that risked his life everyday to save the lives of others. Percy Jackson, the demigod whose fatal flaw was loyalty to those he cared about. How could he swear to kill one of his friends? He knew _everybody_ at Camp.

Then again, the other option was to let Forterae kill Nico. Percy would rather die than watch his friend be killed as he stood idly by. Hazel and Frank both generally followed the "lives of many outweigh the few" motto, but Percy could never live like that. He _has_ never lived like that.

At Arion's incredible speeds, it took only half an hour to reach Camp Half-Blood, which they approached from the north, meaning that the HQ must've been located somewhere in Northern Canada. Arion touched down with steaming hooves in the middle of the strawberry fields, trampling a good portion of the plants. A very surprised satyr scrambled away from the horse before shouting, "Hey everyone! They're back!"

Dozens of campers surrounded the three riders as they disembarked. Arion didn't stick around for the fame and instead took off like a bullet over the hill. Question upon question flooded the three, but before they could begin to answer any, Chiron made his way to the front of the crowd.

"Where are the others? And who have you brought back?"

"I'm Quincy Clark, from Camp Jupiter," Quincy introduced himself, holding out a hand to shake. Chiron took the offer and gave him a firm handshake. "Welcome. And the others?"

"Jason and Piper are riding Tempest over right now," Nico answered.

Chiron tried to keep a straight face, but Hazel could see the worry growing in his ancient eyes. "And where, might I ask, is Percy Jackson?"

"With the army," Hazel swallowed. "They got him."

"They've got Percy Jackson, and they're on their way over now to declare war."


	12. Voyage With the Villains

"Gah!"

Percy gasped in pain as something heavy landed on his stomach. He shoved the mysterious object off of his chest and rubbed his eyes groggily. "What the Hades?" The object that rudely woke Percy happened to be a small cardboard box- one of many, many cardboard boxes surrounding him.

Percy found himself in what must have been a cargo room. Boxes and bags were piled along the walls, some balanced precariously on the tops of towers and others suspiciously chained to the cold metal walls boxing Percy in. One lantern hung from the ceiling, swaying in a hypnotic fashion and throwing shadows around the cramped room. Percy pushed himself up into a seated position, leaning against the large bag behind him.

 _Man, you betray a monster's trust one time,_ Percy scoffed to himself. _I've gone from fuzzy blankets to metal floors._ Percy closed his eyes and sighed. His head ached, but the gentle swaying of the room helped him to think- which was a good and a bad thing. He was worried- worried about Camp Half-Blood, worried about his friends, wherever they were. Percy prayed silently to the gods that they somehow survived. He wanted to be with them; he wanted to _protect_ them. Now, they were in trouble and he was located at 45 degrees North, -60 degrees East heading southwest at a speed of 50 knots.

Percy's eyes snapped open. There was only one way he could know that. He was at sea. He was at sea and sailing straight for Camp Half-Blood at a speed fast enough to reach it in one day.

"Gods," Percy moaned, leaning forward so that his elbows rested on his knees and the palms of his hands dug into his eyes. "How am I going to fix this?" Their quest had failed. Percy had promised to _kill_ a demigod, and if the monsters gave him more Hyde, the damage could be catastrophic.

And that's exactly why Percy had to put a stop to it. _Sitting here isn't going to change anything,_ Percy chided himself. _I still have time._ The first thing Percy had to do was figure out where on the ship he was. Reaching forward, Percy grabbed the box that had landed on him earlier, turning it roughly around to find the opening. It had probably slipped off one of the stacks while Percy was unconscious.

"What could they possibly-" Percy stopped short when he was face-to-face with a giant, splotchy red word painted on the side of the box: " **Explosives.** "

Percy stifled the urge to chuck the box as far away from himself as possible. Instead, he gently set it on the ground and used his foot to softly slide it away. Then, he turned around and unzipped the duffel bag behind him. Inside were dozens of axes and swords, stuffing the bag to the brim. Percy turned over a few more boxes- cautiously, of course- and his heart rate escalated; he discovered more and more menacing red labels: " **Poison** ," " **Bombs** ," and " **Extra-Nasty Dynamite Sticks** ," to name a few.

An idea struck Percy, and he laughed coldly. They had stored their "secret weapon" with all the other weapons; Percy had been demoted to an object instead of a prisoner. Looking around, Percy noticed that the room had no portholes, making the room eerily dark with only the swaying lantern to provide any light, and only one door, which looked dented and suspiciously burned on the bottom from who knew what.

"I need to get out of here," Percy mumbled, and he hurriedly crossed the room and yanked on the handle. It was locked, of course. After three more useless attempts, Percy dug around in his pockets for Riptide, uncapped the sword, and jabbed it in between the door's edge and the doorframe, sliding it down and hacking at the lock. After a few tough swipes, the door broke open, and Percy swung it wide open…

…and found himself face-to-face with the very Minotaur he killed about 6 years ago.

"Uh," Percy stated eloquently, and he tried to fling the warped metal door shut again; the beast's giant hand shot out, but Percy caught his furry wrist by jamming it between the door and doorframe. Even so, the minotaur managed to snag Percy by the back collar of his black shirt, and with a grunt, he pulled both his own overbuilt arm and Percy out of the cargo room, carrying the half-blood like a lion carries a cub.

"Watch it!" Percy yelped as he hung by his shirt collar, one hand clinging to the clothing to keep himself from choking and the other wildly swinging Riptide around. "Put me down!"

The Minotaur growled at Percy and simply carried the flailing demigod towards a metal ladder located a couple yards away. Percy looked around, trying to get his bearings. They were walking along a wide balcony ringing the ship, most likely around the second floor since there was a shiny metal ceiling above. The door to the cargo room was one of many doors lining the walkway on Percy's left, and to his right- a vast expanse of shimmering ocean, maliciously slapping the sides of the boat like a cat smacking its toy. The sun was nearing the horizon, preparing to slowly dip down into the sea in an brilliant array of orange, pink, and purple- but until then, it made sure to send its bright beams of light bouncing off the metallic boat and into Percy's eyes.

He shut his eyes tight to keep from going blind, but quickly forgot about the sunlight when he felt the salty air rustle his dark, messy hair. Percy took a deep, soothing breath. He felt more awake, more _alive_ out on the ocean- yet here he was, captured and helpless. _The sea does not like to be restrained,_ Percy thought to himself, remembering his father's all-too-true words from a few years back.

"So Mr. Minotaur," Percy piped up, still swinging as the Minotaur climbed one-handed up the ladder through a hole in the metallic ceiling, his hopping gait making Percy's shirt collar choke him after each step. "I take it this is the ocean division of the monster army? The one Callisthenes and I were supposed to lead? Say, now that Callisthenes is, uh, _out of commission_ , am I in charge? Can I-"

The Minotaur snarled menacingly at Percy, shutting him up. I didn't think so, Percy answered himself. The Minotaur finally hauled himself and Percy up through the opening and chucked Percy a few feet away, where the demigod rubbed gingerly at his throat. However, as Percy looked around, he forgot the burning sensation the choking shirt collar had left on his neck.

"Wow," breathed Percy.

Now, the ship may've belonged to the monsters, but _man,_ was it a beauty. Percy's magical knowledge of all things sea-faring told him that this was a Man O' War, with three looming masts adorned with gleaming white rectangular sails and hundreds of dark ropes tying everything down securely. There looked to be three levels of deck, and Percy was seated on the lowest one near the bow, or front, of the ship. Most designs of Man O' War ships lacked balconies like the one Percy had just come from, but the monsters had modernized this model so that the first floor below deck opened out into a balcony that ran along either flank of the ship. Overall, the monsters' vessel looked like a pirate ship, but there was one feature that stood out even more than its enormous size: it was all made of a silver metal. The floors, railings, and masts shone in the setting sunlight, and Percy guessed that the light-weight metal of the boat was similar to that of a cruise ship- a shiver ran through him as the memory of the Princess Andromeda popped into his mind- and made the boat sailable. Personally, Percy preferred the pirate-like design to the luxury liner, but he knew what that certain design meant- rows of gundecks and cannons ready to fire at Camp Half-Blood upon arrival.

Breaking up the monotony of silver glaring back at Percy were monsters of all shapes and sizes milling about the decks- some sporting full armor, others sipping frilly drinks and leaning on the ship's black railing. Closest to himself, the Minotaur, and the trapdoor through which they'd climbed up onto the deck were a couple of Telekhines, barking orders at each other and carrying some wooden planks between them. One of the taller ones caught Percy's eye and snarled menacingly, so Percy turned his gaze upwards. Perched above him on the ropes stretched taught from the foremast to the side of the ship were numerous Stymphalian birds, crazed eyes staring back down. Percy gulped, remembering the time they had attacked the charioteers racing back at Camp Half-Blood. Not an experience he wanted to relive.

Farther back on the sip, skidding around the quarterdeck, was Orthus, Geryon's two-headed dog. Percy's mind flash-backed to Geryon's ranch, where he had cleaned out the flesh-eating horses' stables in return for his friends' freedom. Luckily, Orthus had not attacked the demigods then, but he had no owner here to hold him back. Brushing by the two-headed dog were Empousai, Draconae, Cyclops, and so many more monsters that Percy had never even seen before. The silver of the decks and the dark wooden trapdoors spaced every 20 yards- leading down to various levels of the ship- could barely be seen underneath the mass of claws, hooves, and gnarly feet stomping about. The poop deck, which made up the third and highest deck of the ship, was occupied by big ol' blue Bonoas, who seemed to be stationed at the ship's wheel, heaving it sharply to the side to counteract a rough wave that had just slammed into the ship.

A loud creak rang out across the decks, and from the wall beneath the poop deck that held the open entrance to the Captain's Quarters, Aralus appeared in full armor.

"Well, if it isn't the man of the hour- Perseus Jackson," the red Giant snarled, crossing the quarter deck as the monsters hurried to clear a path. Aralus made his way over to the foremast and stood next to the Minotaur.

"Aralus, nice to see you again," Percy remarked casually, brushing off his black hoodie and standing up to face the giant. "Oh! I want you to know that I really appreciated my room upgrade. Cold floors, minimum light- first class, I can tell. However, I may have to file a complaint about falling explosives."

Aralus laughed- without humor. "That's what happens when you go back on your word, half-blood!" He flung his iron-clad arms wide, gesturing grandly at the massive ship. "Welcome aboard the S. S. Tartarus, our vessel of victory and _your_ prison. Forterae had our Telekhines and Empousai make you a special welcoming gift."

Percy gasped as something cold and heavy clamped around his thinning waist- he hadn't eaten anything in over twenty-four hours, and even though he'd had quite the feast before the Opening Ceremony in Forterae's conference hall, the past few days had been scarce food-wise. Percy looked down in surprise to find a giant iron band circling his torso, and behind it trailed a long chain, winding all over the floor and up, up... into the gloved hands of the regal Forterae herself.

"What-"

"After the little fiasco at the Ceremony, you think we would let you roam the ship loose? We are not idiots, Perseus," Forterae explained, her expression sinister. She crossed over to the foremast and wrapped the dark, cold chains repeatedly around the mast, tying them securely and locking them with an obnoxiously large padlock. She gave a _humph_ of satisfaction and cast a fuming glance at Percy.

"You are the son of Poseidon, after all. You cannot be trusted- _especially_ at sea."

The chains had enough leeway to allow Percy a ten-yard radius in all directions around the mast, but no more. Percy simply glared right back at Forterae and Aralus before reaching into his pocket and yanking out Riptide, uncapping the pen and taking a frustrated swipe at the chains.

Nothing.

Percy faltered. Then, with a shake of his head, he lifted the blade again and stabbed down. The blade slide down the metal link as if it was coated in oil. Not a scratch was left on the links.

Aralus laughed at Percy's pathetic attempts to cut the chains, and he nodded to the Minotaur, who stomped over to Percy. The bull-man grabbed Percy's sword arm with an unyielding grip, snatched Riptide by the blade, and tugged it away from Percy. Turning towards the railing of the S. S. Tartarus, the Minotaur chucked the sword overboard. Blood dripped from the monster's hand, but he didn't seem to care. Percy stared in disgust and disbelief at the Minotaur's bleeding hand. _These monsters will stop at nothing to please the Giants,_ Percy realized, watching the monster wipe the blood off on his fur.

As the Minotaur trudged back to the giants, Percy called out, "You know the sword'll just come back, right?"

Forterae rolled her eyes at the demigod and scoffed in a low voice, "It does not matter. Your celestial bronze cannot cut through Stygian iron."

 _Stygian iron?_ Percy thought, a sense of dread settling in his stomach. _Didn't Nico say something about it cutting through the mind as well as the body- some weird Hades voodoo like that?_ He worried that this iron band could be more than just a leash.

"We'll leave you be," Forterae finished, heading towards Bonoas at the back of the ship. "Every monster on board the S.S. Tartarus has been ordered to ignore you, so do not bother trying to find help here. You will find no friends, no monster willing to help a treacherous little rat like yourself." Percy narrowed his eyes at the Giant.

"I will always defend those who have earned my trust. Did you actually think I would turn against my friends?" Percy called after her retreating form, and she paused, turning to glance at the chained demigod once more.

"I fooled myself into thinking you truly understood our cause, Perseus. But alas, you are just as ignorant as the rest of them. I am not surprised." She whipped back around and stormed off, the Minotaur following her lead, but Aralus stayed behind. His meaty fist grasped the chain and pulled Percy closer, snarling in Percy's face and letting his spittle spatter the demigod's nose. "I may not be allowed to kill you, under Forterae's orders, but she said nothing about a little _maiming._ " Before Percy could even react, Aralus brandished his dagger and cut a clean slice right above Percy's left eyebrow, letting the red blood trickle down around his eye.

"Aralus!" chided Forterae, and the red giant shoved Percy down hard on to the deck before grumbling after his comrades. "By the way," added Aralus over his shoulder. "The iron stifles your powers- healing, water, earthquakes, blood-bending, all of it. Any attempts to drown the lot of us are futile." With that crushing reveal, he sauntered off across the deck and locked himself back in the Captain's Quarters. Everything was still for a moment- the monsters, the wind, the waves- but the hustle and bustle of ship life returned as quickly as it had left. Percy crawled dejectedly towards the foremast and sat with his back against the icy silver metal. He tried to wipe away the blood slowly dripping down his forehead and eye, but he did little more than smear it across the left side of his face.

Percy felt vulnerable. He was unarmed and tethered to the mast by unbreakable chains; he had no plan and no options. His head throbbed and his heart ached, but it was more than simple self-pity. Percy felt tense, like every muscle in his body was being electrocuted- a feeling he was all too familiar with, thanks to the Grace siblings. His hands began to tremble, and he felt a bubble of panic wedge itself inside of him, fragile and ready to pop at any moment. _What's happening to me?_ Percy cried inwardly. He had never felt like this before, or if he had, never this _strongly._

He wanted to leave the ship.

No, he wanted to jump off the ship and into the water.

The water. Percy wanted the water. He needed the water. _The sea does not like to be restrained,_ Percy thought again to himself. He stared out at the sea, the sun's colors reflecting off the waves, rapidly fading to blues and purples as it descended farther beyond the horizon. _I am part of the sea,_ Percy thought. _I am the sea, and I do not like to be restrained._

Percy's eyebrows furrowed, and a determined grimace spread across his face. _I do not like to be restrained._

Suddenly, Percy leapt to his feet and sprinted away from the metal mast, heading directly for the railing lining the edge of the deck. _The sea,_ Percy thought, his mind blank expect for those few words. _Please, let me reach the sea!_ The Stygian iron chain tugged taught, and Percy was wrenched backwards so hard that he toppled over, hitting the deck for the second time.

The knock to the floor seemed to bring him to his senses. _Was that some sort of panic attack?_ Percy wondered, sitting up but not returning to the mast. Percy had been captured and tied up before, and he had never reacted like that. Why now? Why were his emotions so... amplified?

Monsters passed him by on their way to knot the ropes or polish the weaponry, casting countless dirty glances at Percy as they did so, but none stopped to say anything. They walked around him like he was just a mud puddle in their path. One Empousai nearly slipped as her uneven legs scrambled to steer her out of the son of Poseidon's space. Percy didn't move out of her way.

Percy closed his eyes and felt the ocean's rhythmic swaying underneath the S. S. Tartarus, rocking the hull back and forth. He felt it calling to him, drawing him closer, begging him to join the sea- but he couldn't. He was trapped. He was so _close_ to the ocean, but he couldn't reach it. It was like the ocean was a magnet, and he was a scrap of metal- the ocean was trying to drag him into its depths, wrap him in the currents, comfort him in the endless waves.

But Percy couldn't.

This feeling of belonging in the sea was not entirely unfamiliar. Percy felt it in little doses whenever he went to the beach or stretched on the sands of Long Island Sound. Before now, he had written it off as a peaceful desire, just his enjoyment of the sea. In this moment, though, everything clicked. Being the son of Poseidon, he was drawn to the ocean, and most of the time it wasn't hard to find a way to connect with the water. He lived next to the Atlantic Ocean. He had a little fountain in his room. He almost always had access to water- in the ground, in the pipes, even in the air. Water was always everywhere, calling to him. Even when he resisted its call, it was of his own free will. Now, Percy had no choice. He was prisoner in his own realm, and his mind didn't know how to cope. The Stygian iron was repressing his ability to connect with the sea, making him even more desperate for freedom.

"It's a torture device," Percy mumbled under his breath, placing a shaking hand on the icy iron band. Not only was the Stygian iron affecting his powers, it was affecting his soul. What was it that Nico had told him? Stygian iron absorbs the essence of a monster? It'd explain why Forterae wore gloves when handling the chains, at least. But how would it affect a demigod? _Maybe it's messing with my core; Dr. Derideo said my powers are already unstable, so this must be aggravating them._ The simultaneous increase and oppression of his powers were screwing with his mind.

"Deep breath," Percy told himself, taking in a large gasp of salty sea air and releasing it ever so slowly. He awkwardly stood up- it was hard to maneuver with a giant iron band wrapping around your torso- and dragged himself and the heavy chain back towards the foremast. Two Dracanae slithered by, and one pointed to the trailing chain while whispering into the other one's ear. They both hissed, and the closer one lashed out with a scaly leg and caught the chain, tripping Percy. They giggled and stuck their forked tongues out at the downed demigod before slinking away towards a ladder leading up to the quarterdeck.

 _Feels like middle school again,_ groaned Percy, pulling himself into a seated position against the mast. He felt a weird combination of fatigue, anxiety, and restlessness. In a simple word- uncomfortable. _I just need to... to calm down. Focus on something besides the sea._

To Percy's right, he could see the front of the ship, with a sharp black pole jutting out from the front of the hull. Displayed halfway down the pole, a flag buffeted in the wind, showcasing a black and white snake, wrapped around and preparing to bite a skull.

Percy shivered. _Yikes._ Above him, the Stymphalian Birds sat on the foresail and fore topsail and stared, each one cocking its head sporadically and twitching, silhouetted against a purple and blue sky. They could barely resist the urge to swoop down at scratch Percy's eyes out. Only the Giants' orders kept them at bay.

A jolt ran down Percy's back and he gasped in pain, grabbing the iron clasp and pushing it off of him in a desperate attempt to relieve the stifling pain it shot through his chest. "What the Hades?" he growled, sucking in his stomach in a quick attempt to get the horrible chain off of him. His hands stung at the cold where he touched the Stygian iron, so he tugged his hands into his hoodie and held the iron off that way. He could feel it draining him, suppressing his power and packing it into a tiny box, getting smaller and tighter and fiercer and stronger and-

"Stop," Percy panted, slowly releasing the chain's band. There was nothing he could do now except ignore it. He just had to hold out until they reached Camp Half-Blood.

 _Find something new,_ Percy reminded himself. He scanned the S. S. Tartarus, taking in the looming white sails, the silver floors and masts, the dark, withering ropes, the monsters pacing the decks, Bonoas steering on the other end of the ship with Forterae by his side. For some reason, all those monsters weren't really comforting him.

Off in the distance, Percy spotted something bobbing on the horizon. It looked like a little fisherman's boat, probably hoping to catch more fish in the deeper sea. Percy watched its calming path, slowly sailing closer and closer. He tried to ignore the call of the ocean and just focus on the little boat. _I wonder what they think of the S. S. Tartarus,_ Percy thought, grinning in amusement. _It's not everyday you set sail for some fish and catch a silver pirate ship._

"Target spotted!" a monster shouted excitedly from the crow's nest at the top of the center mast. The monsters below roared and squawked and growled eagerly in reply, then proceeded to run about the decks in a bustle of business. A dozen of them crowded the trapdoors and climbed down the hatches belowdeck, while a good half of the monsters left on deck ran to the starboard railing on Percy's right, leaning over and pointing at the fishermen's tiny boat.

 _Target?_ thought Percy, shakily standing up. The Stygian iron was exhausting him, but Percy tried to shrug it off.

"Monsters!" Forterae announced, cupping her hands around her mouth like a megaphone in order to grab every monster's attention. "A target has been spotted! Let us make sure our cannons work, shall we?"

The hordes of scaly, furry, and slimy beings cheered in approval, pumping their fists and whistling. Aralus re-emerged from the captain's quarters to join the chaos. Percy could feel a rumbling from below, making the upper deck vibrate as the noise echoed up from underneath the silver planks. The sound rolled from the center of the ship to the starboard hull, making the ship tilt slightly to the right as the combined weight of the monsters and whatever was going on below gathered on that one side.

"The cannons," Percy gasped, and he scrambled forward, trying to join everyone by the railing. "They're preparing the cannons. _They're going to shoot the fishermen._ "

"Wait!" Percy yelled, reaching out to any monster that he could, trying to grab his or her attention. "Stop! That boat is carrying mortals; you can't fire!"

"Perseus Jackson!" boomed Aralus, who sauntered smugly over to the chained demigod. "Do you remember what Forterae told you yesterday? Take this as a reminder that monsters take their threats seriously."

"What are you talking about?" Percy yelled in exasperation. "This is different. That boat is carrying innocent mortals; you _can't_ shoot it."

"Why?"

"They'll die!"

"That, little half-blood, is the point," someone responded from behind Percy. He whipped around to find Forterae standing tall, arms held behind her back in a very regal manner. "Shall I remind you of our conversation from yesterday? I warned you that any attempt at mutiny would result in your imprisonment and the slaughtering of any and every human we come across on the voyage."

A thud thundered around the boat as the cannons were locked into place. The ocean roared beneath them, either protesting the upcoming execution or supporting it. Percy wasn't sure.

 _I have to do something._ With a yell of defiance, Percy gripped the large black chain with both hands and yanked for all he was worth.

Nothing.

_They'll die._

"Ready," Aralus began, raising his bulky arm above his head, signaling for the monsters to await his approval.

_They'll die._

"Stop! This is wrong!" Percy screamed. Aralus showed no sign of hearing Percy's words, but a few Telekhines shifted uncomfortably next to Percy. He was getting through to them. _At least some monsters here have morals,_ he thought thankfully to himself.

"Please," he turned to the monsters, reaching out a hand. They scrambled away, so Percy retracted his approach. "Please, he repeated softly. "You know those fishermen don't deserve it."

One of the seals looked into Percy's eyes, as if searching for a clue.

_They'll die._

The Telekhine nodded in approval. He turned to Aralus and barked, "Sir, maybe we shouldn't-"

"Shut up!" roared Aralus, and the giant shot the Telekhine a glare so ferocious that the monsters sniveled in fear and sped away, hiding behind the mast.

_They'll die._

"Set," continued the giant, closing his fist with his arm still raised above his head.

Percy's heart beat accelerated, and every thump of his heart whispered those two same words.

_They'll die._

He had to do something.

_They'll die._

He was about to watch a fishermen's boat smashed to itty bitty pieces; the monsters were too cowardly to stand up against Aralus; Percy was powerless to help.

"No," Percy whispered. "No powers, but I'm not powerless." Tapping his pocket, he let out a relieved sigh when he felt Riptide's familiar form safely tucked away. Percy shoved his hand into his pocket, and with a tug, click, and shink, the ancient bronze blade was ready for battle.

Aralus tensed, preparing to release the cannons. Percy's sword arm swung back before launching Riptide forward, spinning blade over hilt, until it firmly lodged itself in Aralus's bicep.

"GARGH!" roared Aralus, dropping the signal and yanking the weapon out of his arm. He took one look and recognized Percy's sword, sent a deadly glare at the demigod, and chucked it right back at him.

Percy ducked just as it flew over his head and impaled the mast behind him, as if it was a regular mast made out of wood, not silver.

"HOLD YOUR FIRE!" Aralus screamed, stomping over to Percy and shoving the demigod against the mast, Riptide still sticking out inches above Percy's head.

"We warned you what would happen if you committed treason before. And now," he snarled, "now you've gone too far."

"You can't kill them!" Percy spat defiantly. "They aren't even in the ship's path! You _can't_ kill mortals."

"Why do you care?" Aralus growled. He grabbed Percy's right arm and pinned it against the mast. "You do not know them. They are nobody. They are not important."

Percy's eyes narrowed. "Everybody. Is. Important."

"Well, if everybody is important," laughed Aralus cynically, "that would include me- especially since I am your superior." He yanked Percy's chain forward, pulling him off the mast and lifting him ever so slightly, so that just the toes of his beat-up sneakers brushed the deck.

"And you should never assault and defy your superior." Monsters silently gathered around the demigod and Giant, watching with wide eyes- some looked hungry for blood, and others...others looked afraid. Afraid of Aralus. Afraid of Percy.

Aralus' grip on Percy's right arm tightened, and he began to bend it back.

Percy yelled in pain, wrenching his arm first then his whole body as he tried to wriggle out of Aralus's hands. He screamed. The giant bent his arm more and more until-

SNAP.

Percy let out a howl of pain. Aralus grinned at seeing the son of Poseidon so helpless. Percy glanced at his broken arm. His upper arm bone- _humurus,_ his agonized brain reminded him- had been broken. Luckily it didn't stick out of the skin or anything too gruesome like that, but _Damn_ did it hurt.

Percy's breaths came in short gasps. Percy had felt pain in all different shapes and forms, and he knew that a broken arm wasn't the worst thing he'd ever faced, but that didn't stop the pain.

"ARALUS!" boomed a female voice, and Forterae stormed across the decks, not waiting for the monster soldiers to scramble out of the way and kicking a few of them as a result, and punched her comrade's shoulder.

"Drop him."

Aralus did, letting the Stygian iron chain clank obnoxiously to the deck while Percy clinged gingerly to his broken arm.

Before Aralus could begin to explain, Forterae yelled, "He is our weapon. We need him in top condition for the battle, and you just broke his sword-arm."

Forterae looked around at the masses of monsters watching in anticipation- or maybe it was fear? The sun's fading rays were finally extinguished as the ocean swallowed it on the horizon, painting the sky and thin clouds in deep blues and purples. The fishermen's boat drifted away, a fish forgotten and freed from the hook of the fishing line.

"I will not tolerate any mutiny aboard this vessel," Forterae proclaimed. "Not from any demigods, and not from any monsters. Unfortunately, I cannot kill Perseus... yet. _You-_ "

She pointed a gloved finger at Percy, who was sitting on the deck and cradling his broken arm. "You are not allowed to speak to any monster on the S.S. Tartarus unless they address you first. If you try to defy me again, I will personally dissect your girlfriend in front of your bleeding eyes, and I will make _certain_ that you never experience anything remotely similar to joy ever again. As you can see," Forterae gestured out towards the fishermen, "I take my threats very seriously, and you should heed them with caution. I loathe you, and the only reason your limp body isn't hanging from the figurehead of this ship is because I still need you. One false step and I may just end this entire voyage just to have the satisfaction of watching you die. Is. That. Clear?"

Percy nodded solemnly.

"Well," Forterae turned to the crowd of scales, fur, and leathery monsters with an exasperated sigh. "We've missed our chance in regards to shooting those mortals, but keep an eye out for another ship. I will not miss the second time. _Debilis!_ "

The whimpering Telekhine that had spoken out against Aralus slowly crept out of his hiding place behind the mast. "Y-Yes?"

Forterae snapped her fingers, and Aralus snatched the seal/dog/beast in his giant red fist.

"Let this teach the rest of you not to help this wretched boy in any way. Aralus, dispose of him."

Debilis barked a word that was lost in the wind as Aralus chucked the monster off the ship. All eyes were trained to the Telekhine as he tumbled through the air before splashing into the ocean with messy crash.

Nobody spoke.

Forterae glanced down at her injured prisoner. "Take him to the Sickbay and fix his arm. Now."

A Cyclops broke through the masses of monsters and approached Percy. He was wearing a simple black tank top that showed off his bulging muscles. He had a tool belt filled with first aid supplies tied carefully around his waist, and his single eye looked old and experienced.

Wordlessly, the Cyclops grabbed Percy's left, uninjured arm and pulled him to his feet before turning to Forterae. "He won't be able to heal with the Stygian Iron on. It prevents his healing abilities. Could we-?"

Forterae mumbled something under her breath, but she took out a black key from a hidden pocket in her armored pants and unlocked the clasp. The moment it dropped around Percy's feet, Percy gasped in relief. His mind sharpened, his senses jumped into hyperdrive, his vision cleared. He took a deep breath and let it out with a slight laugh. He hadn't realized how tense and pained the Stygian Iron made him until the curse of its metal had been lifted.

The Cyclops nodded in approval and pushed Percy towards the hatch that he had entered earlier that day with the Minotaur.

"Remember what I told you, Perseus. Think before you act," Forterae warned him.

The Cyclops opened the hatch with a grunt and gestured for Percy to climb down the ladder first. Percy did, albeit slowly; he did only have one working arm at the moment. The Cyclops followed closely behind shutting the hatch after himself. The pathway that Percy had stood on an hour before looked completely different in the evening light. No sunlight was glaring off the metal walls and floor. No salty wind lashed at his hair and face this time, as if the breeze had decided it was time to sleep.

"It's the farthest door," the Cyclops informed Percy, and together they followed the ship's railing down towards the aforementioned door.

"So-" Percy began, but the Cyclops hushed him.

"Not until we are inside. Not until Forterae and Aralus cannot hear you."

Dr. Cyclops- Percy assumed he was a doctor, given the first aid supplies- grabbed the brass knob with his meaty, surprisingly scarred hand and shoved the door open. He reached in and lit a lantern that was hooked on the wall, shining a dim orange light into the room. The Cyclops turned to lock the door as Percy squeezed past and climbed up on to the patient's table. The Sickbay looked like a typical Doctor's office: cramped, clean, and quiet. It was made up of two rooms, the first being the main medical quarters and the second being a bathroom with a sink, toilet, and abnormally large shower.

 _To fit those Minotaurs and Laistrogonians,_ Percy realized. He shifted uncomfortably on the thin paper strip laying over the pale blue patient's table. Across from him was a mirror surrounded by wooden cabinets, all locked shut with loads of little padlocks. The metal counter and drawers beneath it were just as securely guarded. Percy looked at his reflection. His hair was messy and stood up on the right side, matted with blood. The cut above his eyebrow was still bright red, and dried blood marked his forehead like baby Simba from the _Lion King._

The Cyclops took a seat on the lone stool next to Percy, causing the old, worn-out wood to squeak under the monster's weight. He reached out toward's Percy's broken arm, which the demigod still cradled delicately. Percy winced when the Cyclops' sausage-like fingers tapped the wound.

The Cyclops held up his other hand to silence Percy, who was busy biting his lip to hold back his cries. Another prod from the Cyclops, another gasp from Percy.

"Hold still," the Cyclops ordered, gently holding the arm up to his one brown eye that looked as if it had seen things Percy couldn't even imagine. _Where has this Cyclops been?_ Percy wondered. _What has he seen?_

"So," began Percy, eyeing the monster's awkward medical procedure. "Where did you get your medical degree?"

"Monsters University," the monster answered, shooting a questioning glance at Percy.

"Wait, really?" laughed Percy. "That exists?"

"Oh yea, Mike and Sully were my roommates- No, it doesn't exist," scoffed the Cyclops, rolling his eye. "Honestly, with how much Tyson praises you and all of your accomplishments, I thought you'd be smarter."

"Well excuse me for believing in a monster's education," Percy defended, wincing as he lifted up his hands in mock surrender. Then, he asked, "You know Tyson? Did you work in Poseidon's Forges?"

"Up until recently, yes. Stationed there for 87 years; worked in the medical field there as well. I've treated more burns than you've ever seen. Tyson in particular shows up often- although half of the time it's just to chat and share a peanut butter sandwich with me." The Cyclops laughed. "Good kid, that Tyson."

"Yea, he is," smiled Percy. "I owe a lot to him." Glancing down at his broken arm, Percy added softly, "He deserves a better brother than me."

The medic gave Percy a dubious look.

"What?" Percy responded, furrowing his eyebrows.

The Cyclops didn't answer right away. He stood and crossed the room, unlocking one of the lower cabinets, and with a clink the padlock opened. He grabbed a tiny container of grape-smelling goo.

Giving up on waiting for an answer, Percy followed his question up with, "Why are you here? Why did you join Forterae and her goons?"

"I didn't join Forterae." The Cyclops returned to his private stool and uncapped the container, dipping one finger into the mix. "I joined Vinomi." The Cyclops spread the fruit-scented medicine on Percy's upper arm.

Percy sucked in a sharp gasp. Then, a cooling sensation spread up and down his arm, and he let out a slow sigh of relief. _He really does know his stuff,_ Percy thought. "I've heard the name Vinomi a few times. Who is he? What does he want?"

"Vinomi is a monster of a breed all his own. He stands twice as tall as Forterae or Bonoas or any of her brothers- whom I've heard you killed. Impressive," mused the Cyclops.

"Is that a grudging respect I hear?"

"Guess again, Perseus. You demigods have big enough egos already." He capped the container and stood once again. "Vinomi is often forgotten in myths because whoever he touches goes insane. Anybody that lives afterwards can't be understood through all of their screaming."

Percy whistled. "Yikes."

"'Yikes' is right. He has talons dripping with thin, sticky poison. One scratch and the pain is unbearable. His victims don't die from it, but the pain is enough to make them wish for death."

"Is there a cure?" Percy asked, a chill running through his body. That... that _thing_ was on this boat. That _thing_ was headed straight for Camp Half-Blood.

The Cyclops shook his head 'no.' He took a few lumbering steps over to his cabinets, pausing in front of the mirror. He heaved a great sigh, gazing at his one-eyed reflection. "I don't agree with his methods, but I agree with his motivation."

Percy slid off of the patient's table, bending his elbow with care. It hurt, but the pain had eased up a bit. "Vinomi wants to kill all the half-bloods because we're killing all of his monsters. Sort of a...taste of our own medicine thing, right?"

The Cyclops shut the cabinet, locking the padlock "...correct."

"And, in all honesty, I get it. We kill first and ask questions later and- and that's wrong."

"Then you understand why this battle is necessary." The Cyclops returned to Percy's side, examining the arm once again and purposefully not looking Percy in the eyes.

"Well, no. I don't think it is."

The Cyclops shot him a questioning glance. The paste on Percy's arm was beginning to burn, but Percy tried to ignore it.

"You see, if the monsters attack Camp Half-Blood, then both people and monsters are going to die. I can tell you now that you will not be able to kill every single demigod, and those who are left will never rest until they avenge the others. Trust me. The cycle will never end. War leads to more war."

Percy subconsciously took Riptide out of his pocket, twirling it delicately in his fingers. The Cyclops stared suspiciously at the pen in his hand but remained silent. "I admit, I used to think that the only way to win peace was to kill the monsters. I thought you were, uh, mindless, I guess. I never thought about your lives, really. I killed...a lot. When I was in Tartarus, I had to face the facts. It was wrong. I was wrong. I saw so many monsters that I had sentenced to time in Tartarus, and- and I wouldn't wish that upon anyone. I met the Arai, and I _felt_ the monsters' pain, their wounds. I..." Percy trailed off, eyes distant and distracted.

The Cyclops was surprised to see the horror hidden in those deep sea-green eyes. _What sort of things has this boy seen?_ the Cyclops thought to himself.

Percy blinked and shook his head, bringing his attention back to the present. "I realized that the only way any sort of balance can be reached is through a compromise."

The Cyclops laughed. "And how do you suppose we do that? Monsters and demigods working under a treaty? Impossible. Look back through history, Perseus. We have never been able to work together."

"No, no, don't you see?" Percy turned to look the Cyclops right in eye. "It _has_ happened. It _is_ possible! Tyson, for example. He and Camp Half-Blood are completely fine. Ella the Harpy, too. Bob the Giant-"

"Who?"

"Iepatus, sorry. Iepatus helped Annabeth and I, and he didn't have to. I owe him my life." Percy grabbed the Cyclops shoulder with his uninjured arm, full of hope. "We don't have to fight anymore. It is possible to find peace. Think of how many lives- demigods _and_ monsters- will be saved."

"Percy," the Cyclops began, lightly dragging Percy's arm off of his shoulder. Percy noticed a scar running around the Cyclops wrist and briefly wondered wear it came from. "Violence is inevitable. How long would a peace treaty last in this world? One false step, and it goes up in flames. Aralus would never agree. Vinomi would laugh in your face and kill you on the spot."

Percy's eyebrows furrowed. "I refuse to believe that. Nobody wants to die; nobody wants anymore death."

"Vinomi does. He thrives on death."

"Well, then Vinomi and I need to have a chat."

" _No._ "

The Cyclops grabbed Percy this time- the wrong shoulder, making Percy wince. "Do not talk to Vinomi. He is unreasonable. You will be killed. Please, just...I don't want to see anybody cut by his talons. The after-effects..." The Cyclops closed his eye. "No monster nor demigod should ever experience that."

Suddenly, the Cyclops opened his eye and let go of Percy's arm. He clapped his hands together and declared, "Your upper arm is broken," as if reminding himself of why they were here.

Percy choked out a dry laugh. "Gee thanks, I had no idea."

"I'll give you a square of ambrosia to eat, and if you spend fifteen minutes or so in that shower, the water will heal you right up- no funny business with the water, or I will be forced to kill you."

"Ha, ha," Percy laughed, but he quickly stopped when he saw the Cyclops' expression. "Oh. Yea, okay. No funny business."

Percy headed over to the bathroom section of the Sickbay, and as he shut the door, he caught a glimpse of the Cyclops eyeing that scar on his wrist with a faraway look. Percy wondered again how the Cyclops got it. There's a story behind every scar- Percy would know- but something told Percy the Cyclops' story wouldn't be one he'd be willing to share.


	13. O' Iris, Accept My Offering

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Percy Iris-messages Camp

Percy took a deep breath.

He was alone.

His shaking, eager hands fumbled with the slick shower nozzle, hurrying to start the spray of water. Finally, his hands gained traction and steaming water shot out of the silver showerhead. Percy sighed in relief as the water blasted into his matted black hair and rushed down his back and face, catching in his dark eyelashes and slipping over his grin. He hadn't felt anything this relaxing in days.

The bathroom quickly filled with steam and heat, water condensing on to the dull silver walls in little droplets. The water spraying from the shower and running down Percy collected in growing puddles by his feet in the large white tub. The shower curtain was translucent and plastic, oddly shredded in a few places from the occasional clawing of a slipping monster in the tub.

The S.S. Tartarus may've been Percy-proof, but he could feel the water's magic already taking effect on his broken, goo-covered arm. Percy concentrated on letting the water slide over the rest of his skin, healing his cuts, bruises, scrapes, and scratches. It felt good to be in the presence of water again. No, it felt amazing. For once, Percy didn't bother keeping his clothes dry- yes, he was still wearing his clothes and yes, he had two very valid reasons. One, those clothes needed to be washed as much as he did. The black shirt Percy wore was stiff with sweat, dirt, and blood, and his jeans were scuffed and stained from the battles of the last few days. Secondly, Percy preferred not to be naked when he Iris Messaged Camp Half-Blood.

Digging in his sopping wet pockets, Percy found no coins. No drachmas, no quarters, not even a chocolate coin. He was offering-less. _Damn,_ he thought. _Guess I'll have to call in a favor with Iris._

"O Iris," Percy began in a hushed voice. The Cyclops medic was no doubt waiting just outside the bathroom door, and Percy figured these walls were too thin for any secrecy. "I owe you an offering. This call is really important - like, the-apocalypse-is-coming level of importance - and I really need to speak with Chiron at Camp Half-Blood."

For a suspenseful second, nothing happened. The mist curling off of the hot water stayed, well, misty. Percy felt his heart seize up at the thought of not being able to warn Camp.

Suddenly, the steam shifted and swirled, warping into the image of a familiar centaur's hairy upper chest and bearded face.

"Thank you, Iris," Percy breathed in quiet relief. Chiron startled upon seeing the sudden Iris Message before breaking into a wide smile.

"Percy!" he announced in surprise. Percy shushed him, holding a finger to his mouth.

"Percy?" Chiron started again, lowering the volume of his voice. "Where are you? Are you alright?"

"Is everybody else alright?"

"Percy, I'm far more interested in your situa-"

"No. I need to know. Is everyone there? Have you heard from Jason, Piper, Nico, or Hazel? I got knocked out before-"

"Everyone made it out, and they're all here at Camp," Chiron answered, and Percy almost laughed in relief. "We've been giving them ambrosia, and by now they've all healed. Everyone's okay. Now, please answer _my_ question: are _you_ alright?"

"I'm fine, Chiron," Percy replied, his voice cracking halfway through. The knot of anxiety that had wedged itself in Percy's chest was loosening already. His friends were alive. He was talking to Chiron. He was happy. However, the look in Chiron's eyes betrayed his doubt that Percy was actually "fine" for one second. The demigod sighed.

"Okay, no; I'm not fine. I'm surrounded by a hell of a lot of monsters, unable to control the ocean in defense, living under the threat of being poisoned into a psychopathic trance. I've been hit, cut, and broken-" Percy held up his right arm to prove his point. "-but I'm not dead, and neither are my friends. That's the best news I've heard all day."

Thick eyebrows drawn into a squint of confusion, Chiron asked, "Where are you, exactly?" Behind him, the lilac of an evening sky cast a calming haze over Camp Half-Blood. From what Percy could see, Chiron was standing on the porch of the Big House, wheelchair tucked neatly in the corner in disuse. Chiron had always been a fan of evening walks in horse-form; gave him a chance to stretch his legs and all.

"Well, I'm in the shower right now," Percy huffed, wiping water away from his eyes but still letting it soothingly run down his face. "But on a grander scale, I'm on board the S.S. Tartarus, which is this giant warship headed straight for Camp. We'll-" Percy gulped. "We'll be there by morning."

"Hmm," Chiron shifted uncomfortably. "That is serious."

Percy held back a biting laugh. "'That is serious' is a bit of understatement, don't you think? Chiron, this is very serious. These guys aren't messing around. Forterae, Aralus, Bonoas, and some guy named Vinomi are out for blood, and a lot of it." Percy looked straight into Chiron's brown eyes, face determined and expression pained. "We should evacuate Camp Half-Blood."

"What?" Chiron had not expected that. "Camp Half-Blood has never evacuated. Not for the Titan War, not for the Firebird Ambush of 1968, not for the Civil War. Our campers are prepared for-"

"Chiron-"

"Our campers are prepared for war, Percy. Our strength should not-"

"Chiron."

_"-should not be underestimated-"_

_"Chiron!"_

A loud knock thundered on the bathroom door. "What are you doing in there? Who are you talking to?"

Percy's heart hammered against his chest, and he resisted the urge to swipe a hand through the Iris Message.

"Me?" he called out innocently. "Oh, I'm just, you know, showering…and singing!" Percy cast a quick, furtive glance at Chiron and turned back to yell at the door glistening with condensation in the weak light of the electric lamp hanging from the wall. "I was just singing! It's a habit; I can't help it. You know us demigods, getting lots of traits passed down on the godly side. Aren't the sirens related to Poseidon? Maybe they-"

"Fine, fine," the Cyclops grunted from the other side of the door. "Just keep it down in there."

Percy whistled and hummed for a few seconds to sell the lie before bringing his attention back to Chiron.

"I'm under tight security," Percy whispered, eyes flicking between the locked door and Chiron. "What were we talking about?"

"You wanted me to evacuate Camp Half-Blood," the centaur supplied, an eyebrow raised in suspicion.

"Oh, that's right- and yes," Percy pointed at Chiron. "I still think that's the best plan."

Chiron's expression grew grim, standing out against the peaceful Camp backdrop. "Percy, the campers can fight this. I suggest you put some faith in them."

"I don't have faith in myself," Percy hissed, his watery eyes disguised by the water clinging to his hair and weighing it down over his face. "Chiron, I'm going to hurt someone. Badly."

"I know, Percy. The potion-"

"It's not just the potion," Percy interrupted, a subtle whimper sneaking into his voice. Quieter, Percy added, "I promised to kill a demigod. I swore on the River Styx."

"I know."

"You what?"

Chiron sighed sadly. "Nico informed me about the entire quest, including your promise."

"Chiron, I'm so sorry. I didn't have a choice. Nico-" Percy couldn't help it; the pressures of the past day grew to be too much. The Stygian Iron chain, the broken arm, the sheer terror of this quest – it all came crashing down on him. Percy choked out a sob, fist racing to his mouth to try and hold it back. "Nico was going to die. I couldn't stand by. I had to promise it." Percy wiped at his eyes with the palm of his hand. "I had to."

"Percy, I understand. We…we will think of a loophole. There must be something…" Chiron dissolved into pensive murmuring, stroking his short beard. Suddenly, a chorus of shouts sounded from somewhere out of sight, and three seconds later Chiron was being pushed out of the way by five heads. Percy couldn't help but smile as Hazel, Nico, Jason, and Piper crowded into frame- along with the boy Percy had pretended to murder during the Opening Ceremony.

"Percy! Oh my gods, is everything okay?" Piper asked, pushing her way to the front, and quickly followed her own question up with, "Why are you soaking wet?"

"I'm healing in the shower," Percy explained, once again lifting his arm. The goo had washed away, and by now Percy assumed that all of his cuts and bruises had faded too. He sniffed, trying to quickly recover from his brief breakdown. No need to worry them more, Percy thought. "I'm okay now. I'm so glad to see that you all got away. Was anyone hurt?"

"We're all safe," Jason grinned, arm wrapping around Piper's shoulders comfortably. "We're glad to see you're alive too."

"Hang in there, Percy!" Hazel piped up, giving him one of her signature comforting smiles.

"Percy Jackson," started the boy from the Ceremony, clearing his throat awkwardly.

"Hello, uh-"

"Quincy Clark," the red-headed demigod supplied. "Son of Ceres."

"Hi, Quincy. Sorry about earlier; it was a necessary part of the plan."

"All is forgiven," Quincy replied, subconsciously rubbing his throat.

Jason raised his hand as if he were in class, grabbing everyone's attention before asking, "What were you and Chiron talking about? Battle plans, I hope?"

"Sort of," Percy responded.

"Percy thinks a Camp-wide evacuation is needed," Chiron answered for Percy, doubt obvious in his voice.

"Camp-wide evacuation?" Nico repeated, incredulous. "What, you think we can't handle it?"

"No, that's not it at all," Percy shot back, already exasperated. "You guys already know that I promised to kill someone," Percy pleaded. "If nobody is there, then I can't kill anyone, and neither can the monsters. This is going to be a huge war, probably bigger than the Titan War in regards to the sheer number of monsters, and I want everyone to be safe." Percy's intense expression caught Chiron's uneasy one. "Chiron, you know what I'm capable of, and you know the threat I pose."

"Yes, I do," replied Chiron. "Try your best to resist them, but if you aren't able to, we will do our best to save you."

"Listen to me," Percy ordered, looking each person in the eyes individually. "If the safest route is to kill me… do it."

"Percy-"

"Please," Percy stopped Jason mid-sentence. "I'd rather die than kill my best friends."

Silence fell over the demigods.

"Look, I know that Camp Half-Blood is tough. We can handle a lot: Gaea, Kronos, everything. But…this is another level. I don't want to risk the safety of the Camp by helping the other side." Percy paused. "If we can't evacuate, then please send for help. Call Thalia and the Hunters. Call Camp Jupiter. Call anybody. Gather as many reinforcements as you can. "

"Already ahead of you," Jason replied. "Hazel notified Frank as soon as we got back to Camp. We were at that Ceremony, too; we saw how many monsters are involved. I'll Iris Message Thalia after this. And Percy-" Jason looked at him, expression determined. "We're going to free you from the monsters and the Hyde."

Percy smiled gratefully. "And I'm going to wreck Vinomi's plans if it's the last thing I do."

Hazel opened her mouth to comment, but instead of hearing her voice, Percy heard a loud, demanding shout echo from somewhere out of sight. The demigods in front of Percy all turned and shifted out of the way as if by magic. Percy's smile widened. There was only one girl who had earned that commanding respect.

"Annabeth!" Percy exclaimed as the blonde demigod forced her way to the front of the crowd. Her curled hair was tugged back into a ponytail, although a few strands always hung out stubbornly around her face. Her grey eyes were intense - relief, joy, and worry mixed into a storm of concern.

"Seaweed Brain," she replied, the huge smile lighting up her face mirroring Percy's. "Thank the gods you found a way to contact us." Then, Annabeth dropped her smile and pointed at Percy with a scolding finger. "What the Hades were you thinking? Getting yourself captured and- and tortured? I've been worried sick! I get a call up in Olympus that, 'Hey, your boyfriend has been taken hostage by a horde of monsters and is trying to pull off a double-agent scheme that will directly affect the conditions of an approaching war?' AND he's all alone?"

"Thank you for summing that up," Percy mumbled, crossing his arms.

"Percy, I-" Annabeth paused, searching for the right words. "I just miss you. I'm worried. Please stay safe."

"I miss you too, Annabeth," Percy replied softly. "I'm doing everything I can." Then, addressing the entire group of demigods, "Some of the monsters here aren't completely convinced about their cause. A telekhine earlier tried to defend a mortal. They don't want any more bloodshed than we do, but they feel like they have to fight in order to prove that they have lives too. We kill them ruthlessly, you know. I think… I think we could make a truce. They kill thousands us, but we kill millions of them. Monsters just react to how they've been treated all their lives. Tyson, Ella - they're good people. Other monsters can be good, too. We just have to initiate that truce."

"Percy," Chiron started, looking hesitant. "I appreciate the idea, but monsters have been attacking us for centuries. I highly doubt that a peace treaty would hold up."

"But has anyone ever tried? Trust me, I really think it could change things for the better."

Hazel spoke up: "I think it's worth a shot."

Nico nodded in agreement. "Misunderstandings are the start of so many feuds," he explained, looking at Percy knowingly. "Why not try?"

"Cerberus was nothing but a lonely puppy," Annabeth added, deep in thought. "Briares the Hundred-Handed One lost his self-confidence." Looking up into Percy's eyes, Annabeth grinned curiously. "I think you may be onto something."

Jason was squinting at the ground; Percy couldn't tell if it was because he was thinking or because he wasn't wearing his glasses, which had been broken the day before. "When would we propose this… treaty?" he asked.

Percy bit his lower lip. "I'm not sure. Unfortunately, I don't think I can convince enough monsters here for a mutiny. The war is going to happen. When we're there, though… maybe we could stage something? I don't-"

A deep thunder clap echoed around the bathroom, shaking the tub Percy was standing in and momentarily shutting off the water.

"What was that?" Piper asked, eyes wide.

Percy turned the shower off fully, listening to the shouts and stomps above him. _It couldn't have been thunder,_ he wondered. There were no storm clouds in the sky when I was out there earlier.

Percy gasped in horror with sudden realization.

"The cannons," he whispered, staring off into space with his mouth open in shock. "Oh my gods- I have to go."

"Wait, what do you mean-"

Percy slashed his hand through the Iris Message, cutting Annabeth off mid-sentence. She could chew him out about it later. Scrambling out of the tub and nearly slipping on the slick floor, Percy lunged for the door while willing the water to drain from his hair and clothes. It pooled on the floor, leaving quite a mess, but he didn't care.

Unlocking the bathroom door and swinging it open, Percy found Dr. Cyclops standing in his way, arms crossed and expression serious. Clouds of heated steam burst through the doorway and fogged the mirrors in the main medic area, curling past the monster and demigod. Who knew that a face with only one eye could look more intense than one with two?

"Do you think I'm deaf?" Dr. Cyclops grumbled. "Unless your singing voice tends to sound like hastily whispered battle plans, then I've caught you in a lie."

The ship rocked heavily under the waves, causing Dr. Cyclops and Percy to grab the doorframe. The padlocks on the medicine cabinets clinked into each other with the rolling movement.

Percy swallowed his nerves. "Look, you've got to under-"

Dr. Cyclops held up a large hand, signaling Percy to stop. "I was prepared to pummel you the moment you stepped out of that shower, but I heard what you said about the truce. Your...your friends agreed with you." He looked anxiously behind himself at the door that led back out onto the S.S. Tartarus' balcony. In a quieter voice, the Cyclops continued, "Do you really think there's a chance?"

Percy moved his hand from the doorframe to the Cyclops' scarred wrist. The monster's head whipped around to face the demigod, and he nearly yanked his hand away before seeing the determination in Percy's green eyes.

"I believe we can start a truce. I really, really do. Help me get us there."

The Cyclops sighed and stepped back, allowing Percy to enter the main room. Percy stood with the patient's table behind him, and the Cyclops stood across from him with the mirrors and cabinets behind him.

"Do you-" Percy started, then took a shaky breath. "The cannons. Did they fire those cannons at a mortal boat?"

The Cyclops' grim look was enough of an answer.

"I have to do something," Percy said, and he turned to leave.

"Wait," came the Cyclops' harsh whisper.

"No." Percy turned around, eyebrows furrowed. "I've done enough waiting around." Fishing Riptide out of his pocket, Percy blurted out, "I can't believe they would just- just _shoot a mortal!_ " Percy unsheathed the sword and jammed it into the patient's table. "What were they thinking? The mortals didn't do anything."

"Forterae did warn you about what would happen if you staged a mutiny," the Cyclops reminded Percy, crossing over and tugging Riptide out of the table.

"She just expects me to stand by while she murders the innocent? The monsters have a vengeance against the demigods, sure, but the mortals are supposed to be left out of it!"

"This is a punishment on _you,_ " the Cyclops responded, frustration seeping into his voice. "You staged a mutiny, so Forterae followed through on her punishment. What else did you expect?"

Percy ran his hands through his hair. "I don't know; I thought she was bluffing? I didn't think the mutiny would go wrong in the first place, so I didn't really consider her threats heavily."

"Well from now on, pay attention." The Cyclops put his hands on Percy's shoulders, steadying the demigod but making sure he looked him in the eye. "What do you think you can do? If you go up there now, you won't be able to undo what has been done. Arguing is futile, and nobody is going to listen to your complaints. Besides, how do you expect to show up on the deck above and make a difference? The moment I bring you up there, you will be strapped back into the Stygian Iron chain - I can't do anything to prevent that. Don't give them any more reason to distrust you."

The Cyclops stepped back and held out Riptide. "You want a truce? Start with me. Tyson spoke admiringly of you, and from what I've seen and overheard, you have good intentions. I'll see what I can do to help you."

Percy took Riptide and capped it, tucking it back in his pocket. With matching expressions of determination, they shook hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ha! I'll bet you all thought I abandoned this, didn't you? nOPE. So, I feel at least some explanation is in order: this past year has been insanely busy. Everything on my plate took extreme priority over this fic, so it got pushed to the bottom of my To-Do List every time. I never forgot about it, and it's been hanging over my head for this entire past year. I've decided that updates will occur faster if I keep the chapters shorter; as you can see, this one is about half the length of my more recent chapters. I figured that it would be better if you got more updates, even if they were shorter, because eventually you will have the entire story. You aren't getting less, you're getting the same amount divided into smaller portions.
> 
> I want give you all one giant hug for sticking with me all this time. Guests and followers, thank you so much. You mean the world to me. I'm always stunned when I get a new follower, even after all this time. Please continue to leave comments! I appreciate them whole-heartedly!
> 
> Some little estimates and factoids:
> 
> -this fic will be finished before August
> 
> -the next chapter has been started, and I am about a 3rd of the way through it. It will be longer than this one.
> 
> -Vinomi finally appears in the next chapter!
> 
> Big thank you to everyone again,
> 
> -LittleLeyLine
> 
> (PS: I HAVEN'T READ ANY RIORDAN BOOKS POST-BOO, SO I APOLOGIZE FOR ANY DISCREPANCIES WITH NEW CANON)


	14. Dinner And A Show

Dinner on the S.S. Tartarus was lonely. Percy sat, perched near the top of the foremast, with a checkered blanket full of food in his lap and a Stygian Iron chain clasped around his middle. 

The sun had already dipped below the horizon, turning the sky a deep, stormy blue as the lavender of the sunlight faded out for the night. The silver Man O’ War sailed in solidarity over the darkening waves, the moon taking refuge from the cold night air under a blanket of storm clouds. The rain had yet to start, but the chilly wind was sign enough of its presence. 

The crow’s nest, where Percy sat alone, was high above the rest of the ship, next to the buffeting topmost sail. A typical crow’s nest was a small, wooden, circular platform with a railing from which pirates could keep a look-out for land and enemy ships. On the S. S. Tartarus, the wood had been painted black (for no reason Percy could figure it out, other than a villainous aesthetic) and was the only wooden part of the ship’s framework he had seen yet. While the rest of the ship had reflected the sun’s heat with its cool, light metal, this little platform had absorbed it, giving Percy some much-needed warmth. 

His back leaned against the mast, and his criss-crossed legs took up the rest of the floor space- well, his legs and the enormous chain links attached to the cuff around his torso. When Dr. Cyclops (whose name, Percy found out, was Sandro) brought him back to the upper deck, Forterae had ordered that he sit in isolation so as not to influence any of the monsters or stage any more tricks. The chain was too heavy for Percy to climb alone up the dark rope net connecting the crow’s nest to the ship’s railing, so Sandro was assigned to help. He had become Percy’s personal warden in the eyes of the giants, which Percy had no complaints about whatsoever. As the Cyclops strapped on some gloves and situated Percy and his Stygian Iron chain at the top, making sure he was secure, he sighed heavily. “I’m sorry you have to wear this.” Sandro gestured to the Stygian Iron. “I know what it’s doing to your body and mind.”

Percy gave him a half-hearted smile. “I’ll be fine. Maybe I’ll manage to sleep through it, you know? Just ignore the constant pull of the sea and the dull ache everywhere in my body.” Pained, Percy added, “Piece of cake.”

Leaning towards the demigod’s ear, Sandro whispered gruffly, “I’ll try and think of a plan in regards to the getting a truce to work. You do the same. I’ll bring you food once it’s served to the rest of the crew, and a little later we can discuss our plan of action.” Percy nodded in agreement and watched as the Cyclops climbed down the ropes once more. 

Now, Percy leaned against the mast with no ideas and no appetite. The Stygian Iron had been on him for about an hour now, and it was really starting to wear him down. The Stymphalian Birds that were usually perched all over the masts and ropes had shifted away from Percy, sensing the raw agitation of his power. It was like sitting near a jack-in-the-box. They knew the Stygian Iron was winding Percy up, stuffing his powers down deep inside, and if released, the outburst would be dangerous. They could feel it like an invisible vibration of energy. 

Yet, the mental and physical strain left Percy feeling energy-less. His limbs were heavy, his eyelids heavier. He had managed to eat half of the sandwich he’d been provided, but the gnawing sensation in his stomach was not hunger, but fear. Anxiety. Desperation.

 _The ship will be at Camp by morning,_ Percy analyzed. _It’s going to be hundreds of demigods versus thousands of monsters. We’re going to need a god’s help to kill Forterae, Aralus, and Bonoas._ Eyes slipping shut, Percy laughed quietly. _Maybe Dionysus will help. Finally be of some use._ Percy continued to recount the details of the situation in his mind, trying to focus on something other than the dull pain coursing its way through his body. 

He didn’t know when, but at some point he slipped into a restless sleep, going deaf to the world around him- until a loud slam sent him rocketing to his feet, instinctively unsheathing Riptide. It took Percy a second to realize that the slam had come from somewhere below, and inching towards the railing of the crow’s nest, Percy peered down at the commotion.

All of the monsters on board the S. S. Tartarus were congregated on the upper decks, anxiously crowded around the huge doors to the Captain’s Quarters. With the sun below the horizon, torches had been lit and placed intermittently across the deck, casting wavering shadows across the monsters and bathing the scene in an ominous orange light. Forterae, Bonoas, and Aralus stood guard on each side of the giant, red doors decorated in ornate gold designs, and standing in front of them was perhaps the scariest monster Percy had ever laid eyes on. 

He did indeed stand two times taller than the giants as Sandro had said, even with his hunched posture. Curved bony spikes jutted out from his spine, arching down his back like those of an ancient beast. His head bald, his arms bare, the monster had his scars and scrapes and bruises on full display. His nose looked broken, like a block of wood had been crudely chipped into what could barely resemble a nose. A bloody red cloth draped across his torso, dulled in color next to his ashy grey skin. He wore black armor - armor so black that it made the night sky look like day in comparison. Standing with his feet apart and knees bent, he looked as if he anticipated an attack - but who could take him? Nobody on board was big enough, brave enough, bold enough to try. And his infamous talons- _di immortales._

The long, scythe-like talons extending from his thick fingers nicked the deck, clicking and tapping an omen of death on the metal floor. From this height, Percy had trouble seeing for sure, but he could have sworn that he saw thick, viscous venom dribbling down the length of the talons.

“Holy Hades,” Percy gulped, gripping the railing tighter. He knew who this was before the name was even announced. _This_ was the monster he had heard about. _This_ was the nightmare that kept monsters awake at night. _This_ was the atomic bomb sailing towards Camp Half-Blood. _This_ was-

 _“The Great Vinomi,”_ bellowed Aralus, “has awoken, and he wishes to speak to his army.”

Aralus stepped back, allowing Vinomi to step forward, his sandaled feet echoing with each step amidst the tense silence. He flexed his fingers, stretching the talons out near the crowd. A couple of telekhines whimpered and scrambled out of the way, cowering behind a crowd of Cyclops. Vinomi’s harsh eyes scanned the masses, sweeping over them with the force of a hurricane. He grinned, the corners of his mouth curling up to reveal uneven, pointed teeth.

“MONSTERS,” he boomed, his deep rumble of a voice reverberating off the metal ship. Percy subconsciously took a step back, Riptide held at the ready in unnecessary defense.  
“I see before me the foundation of a new generation of life. I see the bricks with which we will build a new world, a world where the monsters roam freely, where all land is ours, where the only traces of demigod left are their _rotting bones crushed underfoot as we march on.”_

A chorus of cheers rang out in the crowd below. The vicious confidence in Vinomi’s gravelly voice shook Percy to the core. He sounded so sure that this is where the world was headed. Tossing Riptide into his left hand, Percy wiped his sweaty right one on his pants.

“Listen to me,” Vinomi continued, his malicious grin growing wider and baring those dagger-like teeth again. “I have won nearly every battle I have ever fought. After countless battles against those wretched weaklings, I’ve confirmed that they all share one weakness: unity.”

Lifting an eyebrow in surprise, Percy leaned forward over the railing again, the Stygian Iron chain around his middle clinking softly against the wood.

“When they stand united, they fall united. They are willing to follow blindly into war out of obligation, a membership to a cause. Break one chain link, and the whole structure collapses. You all-”

Vinomi gestured to his crowd, talons slicing the air above the heads of ten dracanae. “You all have your own cause. Your own motivation. You don’t believe in your friend’s cause? Your captain’s motivation? Find your own,” he growled. “I know all of you have a reason to be here. Focus on it, fuel it. That’s your cause. I’m not asking you to fight on my behalf, or Forterae’s behalf, or Callisthenes’ behalf. Fight for yourself. _Be_ selfish. Get revenge for _yourself_ ; avenge _yourself_. Who the hell cares why you’re going to fight? Just do it!” Vinomi’s growl grew into a roar. “This war is an opportunity, not a movement. We all loathe those half-blooded bastards, and that’s our only commonality. Kill our soldiers, we fight on. Kill our captain, we fight on. There is no chain to break with us. Break one arrow, be bombarded with thousands more! Those half-bloods deserve to _die. They deserve to see their friends screaming in pain. They deserve your wrath!”_

The monsters roared, cawed, and shrieked thousands of responses; spouts of fire burst from Kampê and multiple Empousai. Vinomi let loose a laugh that chilled Percy to the bone, then spun back towards the Captain’s Quarters. He whispered something to Forterae before yanking the red doors open and disappearing inside. Forterae and Aralus began to relay orders to the crowd, but Percy was no longer listening. He sheathed Riptide with shaking hands and dropped hard to the floor, scooting back up against the mast for support. 

_They deserve to see their friends screaming in pain,_ Vinomi had exclaimed. Why was that monster’s vengeance so… so strong? _Nobody_ , Percy thought, _Nobody deserves to see that._ Vinomi’s selfish, demigod-loathing speech sat like a brick in Percy’s stomach. Percy understood the monster-demigod rivalry. Monsters kill in retaliation. Nobody has attempted peace before, so the animosity continues in a never-ending loop. That didn’t explain, however, Vinomi’s desire for the extinction of all half-bloods. No Camp Half-Blood speech had ever included bits about “crushing the bones of monsters underfoot.”

Percy sighed, eyelids drooping and gaze floating aimlessly towards the sky. It was hard to think with the Stygian Iron seeping away his strength. It’s cold surface burned like ice, chilling Percy’s stomach through his shirt. A shiver racked Percy’s body, and he tried to pull his knees towards his chest - but the chain’s cuff blocked them from getting close enough. 

Percy’s ADHD battled with his fatigue, making him fidgety and uncomfortable. His fingers, no longer able to remain idle by his side, reached into his pocket and brought out Riptide again, twirling the pen absentmindedly.

One part of Vinomi’s speech had lodged itself in Percy’s mind like a splinter. Vinomi had said that he had won nearly every battle he had fought. Nearly. That meant there was a way to defeat him. But what was it? What secret weapon could they use against Vinomi?

Secret weapon. Those words brought yet another problem to light. Percy would inevitably be given another dosage of Hyde come morning, and he would be triggered once he reached Camp Half-Blood’s shores. Percy could see it now: the valley flooding, cabins burning, Riptide cutting through the hearts of the ones he loved most. Percy shuddered. _How did I get myself into this?_ Percy clicked Riptide, letting the bronze blade glint in the torchlight from below. 

Percy closed his eyes. He could still hear Forterae’s screams:

_“Swear you will kill a demigod!”_

__

“No!”

__

“SWEAR IT! SWEAR-”

__

_“I swear on the River Styx!”_

This was the real deal. Somebody was going to die. By Percy’s hand. Tomorrow.

Suddenly, Percy sat up, eyes wide. “What if-” he whispered to himself, eyeing Riptide curiously. Without him, the monsters wouldn’t be allowed inside the borders of Camp Half-Blood. They needed a demigod’s permission. Without Percy, their plans would be extremely deterred, possibly destroyed. The demigods would have a huge advantage. After all, Percy had sworn to kill a demigod...he never said _whom_ …  
Riptide’s blade rested near Percy’s chest. Without him, would the demigods have a better chance? Did anybody at Camp _really_ need him?

“No.” He dropped Riptide, letting it clatter against the chain links and the wood of the crow’s nest. “No, no, no.” Percy shook his head as if to dissolve the idea. People at Camp Half-Blood did need him. They _do_ need him. Percy remembered something he said to Kymopoleia during the Seven’s quest in the Mediterranean Sea: “I don’t run when my friends need me.” He had to try and find a different way. As big of an asset as he was to the monsters, the demigods would need him just as much. 

He would find a different way. He couldn’t abandon his friends, not now. 

“Perseus.”

Percy nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound of a sudden voice. A cloaked head rose from below the crow’s nest, shrouded in shadow and dark cloth like the Grim Reaper himself. Then, a scarred hand reached up and pulled off the hood, revealing the Cyclops medic, Sandro.

“Oh, thank the gods.” Percy slid back down the mast, tension leaving his body.

“I convinced Forterae that you need a follow up with your arm’s condition - although we both know it’s fine - so I’m here to ‘take you to the infirmary.’” He used one gloved hand to do air quotations. With a smug grin, Sandro added, “I have a plan.”

“Awesome,” Percy smiled, hurriedly sheathing Riptide. “Does that mean I can take this stupid chain off?”

Sandro nodded, and he reached forward to grab the Stygian Iron clasp around Percy’s waist, tugging it and Percy towards the railing. He quickly fumbled with a key, unlocking the chain with a satisfying _shunk._ The moment the Stygian Iron fell off of Percy and he stood up, he sighed in absolute relief. The sea below roared in response, and the incoming storm winds picked up, rustling Percy’s hair and Sandro’s cloak. Sandro whistled appreciatively. “Dr. Derideo knew what he was doing when he picked you,” he mused, giving Percy a hand in climbing off the crow’s nest and onto the rope net extending down to the deck below. 

They climbed down swiftly and silently, eyeing any passer-bys with heavy suspicion. Percy hadn’t noticed while he was sitting up at the top of the mast, but most of the monsters had retreated below deck for the night. A good night’s sleep was a necessary part of a successful invasion, after all. Now, a few telekhines waddled across the deck with mops and buckets and two Laestrygonian giants lounged near the Captain’s Quarters. Bonoas stood stiffly by the ship’s wheel, blue hands steady and still. Other than them and the Stymphalian birds perched overheard, all decks were empty. 

Once Percy and Sandro made it down the net, Sandro grabbed Percy’s arm - the one that hadn’t been previously broken - and twisted it behind Percy’s back. With a yelp, Percy tried to turn to face Sandro, but before he could Sandro hissed into his ear, “We need to convince them that you’re still my prisoner. You can’t just walk about freely.” 

Sandro nodded with a grim stare at a telekhine that slid by, who barked gruffly in response. The Cyclops pushed Percy forward, and at first Percy expected to be led back towards the hatch that opened down towards the Armory and Infirmary, but Sandro directed him in the opposite direction. They crossed the slippery deck, Percy’s shoes squeaking against its slick surface and echoing in the night air.

_Squeak, squeak, squeak._

“Could you cut that out?” Sandro spat in a hushed voice. “Are you trying to draw attention to us?”

“I’m not _trying_ to do anything,” Percy grumbled back, shoes still squeaking. _Squeak, squeak._ The telekhines had ceased their mopping and looked up, watching the Cyclops and demigod cross the empty deck. The birds above tilted their heads, eyes trained on the pair. “Besides,” continued Percy, louder for his growing audience. “You’ve already got me tied up as your prisoner. I can’t do anything like this - completely helpless, that’s what I am. You may be able to silence me, but you can never silence my shoes.”

Sandro jostled Percy’s arm roughly, leaning in to mumble, “You’re laying it on a _little thick.”_

__

Bonoas had been casting occasional glances their way, so Sandro cleared his throat and called out casually, “Just escorting Perseus below deck.”

__

Bonoas, eyes back on the horizon, replied in a smooth, deep voice, “I do not care.”

__

Percy and Sandro made it to the front of the ship, where the steps from the deck they stood on led up to the forecastle deck, hiding a door behind the staircase. Sandro pushed Percy towards it and tugged open the dark door. He shoved Percy in and shut it behind them. 

__

Percy stood at the top of a - surprisingly - wooden staircase, leading down into a dark corridor. One lantern swung lazily above his head, lighting the stairs but no farther. 

__

“These are one of the barracks for the monsters. We’re going to need some help for my plan.” Sandro finally let go of Percy’s arm, which he brought back around front with a gasp. 

__

Sandro shifted past Percy and started down the narrow stairway with a curt hand signal to follow him. Together they rushed down into the corridor below, moving briskly. 

__

“What exactly is this plan of yours?” Percy whispered.

__

“I can’t allow you to stage an attack. If you escape, Aralus _will_ kill me. We need a way to subtly thwart the existing plan, yes? What if we target the Hyde itself? Of course-”

__

Sandro paused by one of the doors in the corridor, squinting at the tiny golden placard in the middle of it. Now that they were in the corridor, Percy could see more lanterns swinging down the hall, but their light was minimal and flickering. He was surprised that Sandro could read the placard at all.

__

“ _113,_ ” he muttered. “She’s farther down.” Sandro turned and kept walking.

__

“Who’s she?” Percy asked, but Sandro ignored Percy’s question and continued on with his plan. 

__

“Of course, we can’t simply get rid of the potion. The giants will notice right away. Now, what if we altered it?”

__

“What do you mean?” Percy asked, walking faster to match Sandro’s pace. “Alter it? Like, alchemy?”

__

“We’ll mix something else in there: water, blood, I don’t know. Something that will change its affects.”

__

Sandro stopped and looked at the door on his left. It read _416_. 

__

“Change its affects? We don’t know what mixing anything in it would do,” Percy whispered urgently. “It could make things worse, for all we know. Add a pinch of salt, and I go bald and psychotic. How will we know what to do?”

__

“That’s why I came to ask for help.” Sandro knocked three times. 

__

They stood in silence for merely two seconds before the door opened with a quick creak.

__

Percy’s shoulders dropped in disappointment. “Aw, _no_ …”

__

Kelli the Empousa stood lopsided in the doorway, flaming hair burning lower than usual and a nightgown hanging over her goat and metal legs. 

__

“Aw, _no_ …” she parroted, looking at Sandro with extreme levels of attitude. “Sandro, I thought you needed help with, like, your medicines. Not _Percyyyy_ …”

__

Percy bit his lip to prevent himself from spitting out a retort and settled for rolling his eyes instead. 

__

Kelli fixed him with an iron stare, the bags under her eyes darkened by the dim light. “I would literally rather kill myself than work with you again.”

__

Percy couldn’t help it. “Be my guest,” he said, waving his arm in invitation.

__

Sandro slapped Percy’s arm hard - “Ow!” Percy whined - and turned back to Kelli. "We need your help; could we come inside? We shouldn't be here right now."

__

Kelli reluctantly stepped out of the way with a hop-clop and allowed Percy and Sandro inside. Shutting the door behind them, she yawned. "This better be important. I need my beauty sleep."

__

"You got that right," Percy mumbled under his breath. He looked up when Kelli fixed him with that stare again.

__

"Did you say something?" she seethed, flames growing larger on her head.

__

"Nope, no, nothing," Percy hurried, hands up in mock surrender. 

__

Sandro, Kelli, and Percy stood in the middle of a small bedroom, clearly not made for extended stays. The walls were made of black planks of wood; Percy had come to assume that the interior of the ship was wooden and only the exterior sported that shiny silver material. She had two kerosene lamps hanging on the walls, stronger than the ones in the hallway. Her cabin was located in the ship's interior, leaving it windowless. A queen-size bed, a nightstand, and chest that looked like something off of a pirate's ship were the only furniture in the cabin. However, that didn't mean the room was empty. In fact, far from it. Assorted pieces of armor littered the floor and bed, made of silver, celestial bronze, and imperial gold. The nightstand was home to a tower of textbooks and journals, papers sticking out haphazardly. 

__

"Percy, would you please tell Miss Kelli about the truce?" Sandro prompted, nudging the demigod. Percy launched into what was becoming a rehearsed speech, explaining how a truce had never been attempted before, how both parties were tired of bloodshed, how people like Ella and Tyson were evidence of a brighter future. As he talked, Kelli’s face lost its harsh expression and melted into one of curiosity. 

__

“You really think there’s a chance?” she asked when Percy had finished. “Like, this isn’t a trick? You’re really on board with this?”

__

“Absolutely,” Percy affirmed. “Are you in?” He held out his hand. Kelli eyed it suspiciously, gaze flicking from Percy’s hands to his eyes and back. Finally, she sighed and shook his hand. 

__

“What do you need me to do?”

__

Sandro stepped closer to the other two. “That is where I come in. We want to do something to the Hyde formula to change its affect on Percy. You’ve been studying chemistry, correct?”

__

Percy was taken aback. “You’ve...what?”

__

Kelli shifted her weight onto her metal leg and crossed her arms. “Yes, Percy. I’ve been studying chemistry. What, you think our entire lives revolve around fighting you half-bloods? Wow. Egotistical much?”

__

“No, I… that’s honestly really cool, Kelli.”

__

“Mhm,” she huffed, and Kelli led Sandro over to her stack of books, which now Percy figured were about science and chemistry. Kelli and Sandro launched into a discussion about bonds and acids and overall a conversation too scientific for Percy to follow. He hadn’t taken chemistry in high school. Well, he had, but after he caused an explosion during their first lab a month into the class, he was switched into physics. Which he failed. So no, he didn’t feel particularly inclined to join that conversation. Instead, he picked up a golden chestplate that lay near his feet and examined it. It was truly a beautiful piece, most likely built by Kelli herself.

__

Percy remembered first meeting Kelli and her friend Tammi at Goode High School’s orientation. With her cheerleader uniform and fang-toothed smile, Kelli had struck a bad chord with Percy right off the bat. He had her pinned as a snobby idiot whose only talent was seducing men to their deaths. Now, Percy looked up to see her pointing to a chart in a textbook she’d tossed onto the bed, explaining something fervently to Sandro. A skilled mechanic, a studious chemist.

__

_We’ve been so wrong about them,_ Percy thought to himself. _All this time, and nobody thought to consider that they have their own lives like ours_.

__

“That’s it!” Kelli exclaimed suddenly, knocking Percy out of his own thoughts and causing him to nearly drop the chestplate. “3 hairs from a monster and approximately 2 drops of blood. That should do the trick.”

__

Percy crossed over to where the two monsters stood. “What changes, exactly, will this entail? That’s a pretty crucial detail.”

__

Kelli closed the textbook with finality and explained, “If added to the vial and shaken, the hair and blood should, like, counteract some of the Hyde’s intended purpose. There’s no way to erase all of its effectiveness. So, basically you’ll still be under the potion’s control-”

__

Percy opened his mouth to interject, but Kelli held up a clawed hand to silence him. “You’ll be under its control _temporarily_. Like, at most 20 minutes. Not 12 hours anymore. But...yea, you’ll still be bloodthirsty whenever you see a demigod."

__

“Great,” Percy grimaced. “Any way we can get rid of the bloodthirsty part altogether?”

__

Sandro shook his head ‘no.’ “Unfortunately, we cannot.”

__

“Then what’s the point?”

__

“The point,” Kelli snarled, shoving the textbook against Percy’s chest, “is that you won’t spend the entire battle trying to kill your friends. After 20 minutes, you’ll be back to normal. That’s totally an improvement. If you want to find a different solution, go for it. But I’m telling you, there is, like, no other solution. Dr. Derideo’s formula was long and complex; there’s only so much we can do on this ship.”

__

“Thank you, Kelli,” Sandro said. “We just have one other favor to ask of you.” Looking at Percy, he added, “Vinomi’s a light sleeper, so we have to act fast.”

__

“What are you talking about?”

__

“The Hyde,” he clarified. “It’s in the Captain’s Quarter’s. If we want to mix in the hair and blood, we need to sneak in there and do it quickly and quietly. Vinomi sleeps in the Captain’s Quarter’s, and we cannot wake him up. If he wakes up, it’s all over.”

__

“That’s your plan?” Percy hollered. “Sneak into Vinomi’s _private bedroom?_ ”

__

Sandro stepped closer to Percy so that his giant brown eye was mere inches away from Percy’s green ones. “You got a better a idea?”

__

“No,” Percy said through gritted teeth. “I don’t.”

__

“Then that’s what we’re doing.” Then, to Kelli, “We’ll need you to distract the guards. I spotted two Laestrygonians posted by the door, and by now the telekhines should be headed to bed.”

__

Kelli nodded and bent down to reach under her bed. She pulled out her iconic purple cheerleader uniform and pushed past Percy and Sandro to go to the bathroom. “Excuse me while I change. I need to fix myself up if this is going to work. If there’s one thing Laestrygonians, like, can’t resist, it’s a cheerleader with a goat leg and flaming hair."

__

\---

__

Ten minutes later, Sandro, Kelli, and Percy stood behind the closed door that led back out onto the decks. Kelli was dressed and had put on a face full of makeup, and she’d snipped a chunk of goat fur off of her leg to use in their secret addition to the Hyde and had given it to Sandro. With Sandro’s baldness and Percy’s demigod-ness, it was the only monster hair available. Percy had his ear pressed against the door, listening for any activity on the other side. He couldn’t hear anything over the sound of the waves crashing against the boat and the wind howling outside. The storm clouds from earlier had finally hit the ship and released their fury. Reaching for the handle, Percy slowly turned it and clicked open the door - and immediately the wind nearly ripped it from his hands. Sandro grabbed the door and pulled it back so that it was only open a crack. All the torches outside had been extinguished by rain and wind.

__

“Ugh, my makeup is going to run,” Kelli whined, stomping her goat leg in frustration.

__

“At least the shadows will conceal Percy and I,” Sandro pointed out. “Now go, distract the guards for us.”

__

On her way out, Kelli whispered into Percy’s ear, “You owe me for this.” As soon as she was outside, she sauntered across the deck and climbed a short ladder that led up to the quarterdeck, where the Captain’s Quarters were located. The storm snatched at her skirt and fire, and she held onto the ladder’s rungs with all her might to keep herself from getting blown off.

__

“Excuse me, boys,” she called once she reached the top, rubbing her hands over her arms as if she were cold. The Laestrygonians looked up at her, confused. “I seem to have misplaced my jacket, and my cabin is too cold to sleep without one. Could I borrow one from you?”

__

“Miss, why didn’t you borrow one from a monster in the cabins?” the first guard asked, his hand already going to the zipper of his leather jacket.

__

“It’s too rough out here for a little Empousa like you,” the second guard added.

__

“Oh, but you two have such large, hunky bodies,” Kelli giggled. “Your jackets are, like, the perfect size. Basically blankets!” She used her powers to keep the Laestrygonians in a seduced trance, focused on her amidst the storm blowing on all sides. “C’mon, you know you want to help _me._ ”

__

Meanwhile, Percy and Sandro sprinted low across the first deck, taking the ladder two rungs at a time, and ducked into the shadows by the ship’s railing on the quarterdeck.

__

“Take my jacket,” the first guard said, shuffling it off his shoulders.

__

“No, take mine,” the second guard insisted, stepping towards Kelli.

__

It no time, the two guards were arguing heatedly over whose jacket would be given to Kelli, providing Sandro and Percy the perfect opportunity to slip behind the guards. Kelli watched them, and the second that Sandro had a hand on the golden handle, she coughed loudly to cover the sound of it opening.

__

“Oh, I might catch a cold out here without a jacket,” Kelli baited the Laestrygonians, earning a new round of debate. That was where they left her, pulling the doors to the Captain’s Quarters shut with a soft _thud._

__

Percy took in the room. The walls were a deep red, covered in maps and lists and graphs. Percy spotted a map of the monsters’ HQ, one of Long Island Sound, one of New York. There were a lot - a _lot_ \- of red Xs on them. A large stained glass window adorned the back wall, looking out at the dark, raving sea behind the ship. It was warm, and Percy welcomed the abrupt temperature change. The comforting warmth, however, didn’t stop the shiver that ran down Percy’s spine at the site of Vinomi sleeping on a bed five times the size of any he had ever seen before. The beast’s spines raised with each sleeping snore, and his talons hung off the bed and dripped onto the floor. _That’s definitely worse than drooling in your sleep,_ Percy thought with a grimace. Even asleep, the sight of him froze Percy to his spot.

__

“Perseus,” Sandro whispered, voice so soft that Percy almost didn’t hear him. “Over there.” Sandro was pointing to a long, beige desk with lots of drawers placed in front of the stained glass window. On top of it was a small wooden box with a large golden band running along its side.

__

“The Hyde,” Percy mouthed, and together they crept across the room, avoiding any planks that creaked or croaked. Once they reached the long desk, Sandro delicately reached over to grab the box.

__

"Why aren’t you wet?” Sandro asked quietly as he did this, standing next to Percy as a sopping mess.

__

“Son of Poseidon, remember?” Percy reminded him, unsheathing Riptide with a _shink._ Even that noise sounded too loud in the Captain’s Quarters. “It’s a nice perk.”

__

The moment Sandro’s scarred fingers brushed the wood, Vinomi let out a choking cough that shocked both of them to the core. Percy swore his heart skipped three beats. They waited a full minute to see if Vinomi would move; he didn’t.

__

Sandro pried open the box, revealing three vials of pink potion inside laying on top of purple velvet.

__

“Fancy,” Percy whispered, reaching for the first vial. Sandro pulled Kelli’s goat fur out of his pocket and nodded to Percy, who brought Riptide to his arm and cut a neat slice across it. Sandro took the vial from Percy, uncorked it, and held it under Percy’s bleeding arm.

__

“One...two drops,” he counted, and he dropped three hairs inside as well before corking it again. Shaking the vial vigorously, they both gasped when it become a shade brighter. They repeated this with the second and third vial.

__

After all three had been altered, and as Percy set the last one down on the velvet lining in the box, a snorting chortle erupted from Vinomi, followed by silence. Complete silence.

__

He wasn’t snoring anymore.

__

Percy swore, and Sandro eyed Vinomi in fear. Vinomi grumbled something unintelligible, but he didn’t appear to be awake. Percy couldn’t move. His breathing become shallow, and he tried to swallow his terror.

__

Vinomi’s leg spasmed, and Percy panicked. He dropped the lid of the box, letting it slam down with a loud _SMACK._

__

Percy grabbed Sandro’s wrist and yanked him back towards the doors, running at full speed across the room. Vinomi grumbled, louder this time, and his shoulders shifted.

__

_“He’s sitting up!”_ Percy nearly shrieked, barely keeping his voice down.

__

Together, the demigod and Cyclops tugged the door open and squeezed through it as soon as it had opened far enough. Neither of them looked back.

__

Kelli was still outside, her flames nearly gone, and she was wearing two leather jackets that dragged on the floor. The giants were still arguing, about something new now, so Percy and Sandro ran the long, shadowed way around to the ladder. They didn’t wait for Kelli. She could fend for herself. Percy’s heart hammered against his ribs, and he felt like he was going to choke on the heartbeats rising up his throat. He and Sandro sprinted across the main deck, and Percy nearly slipped when Sandro redirected him towards the hatch from earlier that day.

__

“Infirmary, now!”

__

They tore open the hatch and dropped down, foregoing the ladder entirely.

__

It wasn’t until they had been sitting in the infirmary for ten whole minutes that Percy could form a whole sentence.

__

“We did it,” he panted. “We did it.”

__

“Thank the gods,” Sandro gasped, clutching at his chest. “Oh gods.”

__

Percy climbed up onto the patient’s table and laid down on his back. “Do you… do you think he saw us?”

__

Sandro didn’t reply right away.

__

“No,” he finally answered. “No, I don’t think he did.”

__

He looked up at Percy wearily. “Get some sleep. You have a big day tomorrow.”

__

“So do you,” Percy replied, but it didn’t take long before he passed out.

__

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Thank you so much for reading my fic! You can also find it on fanfiction under my account "8DemigodRunner8." Please review- I'd love to hear your thoughts!


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